Millions of female patients need some type of gynecologic surgery every year. It may be a hysterectomy or removal of a uterine fibroid or ovarian cyst. Whatever the case, most of these procedures are being performed minimally invasively. Completing these techniques effectively requires surgical expertise.
Maimonides OB/GYN Specialty Services & Women’s Health Institute offers the sophisticated care that women need to treat these issues comprehensively. In addition to receiving our ninth consecutive recognition earlier this year as a Five-Star Recipient for Vaginal Delivery, we were recently named Brooklyn’s only Center of Excellence in Minimally Invasive Gynecology (COEMIG) by the Surgical Review Corporation. It’s a recognition that spotlights our dedication to patient safety and surgical outcomes, says Lindsey Michel, MD, Associate Fellowship Director, Minimally Invasive Gynecologic Surgery (MIGS).
“Being named a Center of Excellence highlights our commitment to delivering the highest quality care for our patients,” she says. “Patients may be able to get a MIGS procedure at a different institution, but as a Center of Excellence, we have demonstrated that we maintain the highest standard of care and that our patients experience extremely positive results with few complications.”
Maimonides is the largest MIGS program in the borough and has the only fellowship in MIGS in Brooklyn.
Exceeding Expectations
To be acknowledged as a Center of Excellence in MIGS, our OB/GYN and Women’s Health group fulfilled strict criteria, including staffing mandates and technology access. Two of the most significant additional requirements centered on surgical experience and patient volume, areas in which our physicians surpassed expectations.
Currently, Maimonides has nine gynecologic surgeons who each carry high-volume surgical caseloads. Each performs well over 50 MIGS procedures each year. With this patient volume, they are all accredited as either surgeons of excellence or master surgeons.
“As a result of our consistent surgical volume, gynecology performs the highest volume of robotic surgeries at Maimonides,” she says. “With robotic surgeries alone, we complete over 400 procedures for our female patients who need gynecologic care.”
Offering Leading-Edge MIGS Procedures
Although some female patients may need open surgery, most can receive the surgical care they need with a MIGS procedure. In fact, most hysterectomies—for benign and malignant disease—are now completed minimally invasively.
In addition to hysterectomies, Maimonides surgeons are trained to perform a full spectrum of MIGS procedures. They have extensive experience with laparoscopic and vaginal surgical techniques needed to treat cancer, pelvic floor disorders and common benign gynecologic conditions including endometriosis, fibroids, and adnexal pathology. Maimonides providers also have expertise in newer procedural techniques including vaginal natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (vNOTES) and transcervical radio-frequency ablation of fibroids.
Dr. Michel says there are multiple benefits for patients who undergo a MIGS procedure. Minimally invasive techniques can reduce pain and scarring. Patients also experience less blood loss, a shorter recovery time, and a lower risk of infections and complications.
Alongside performing these procedures, she says our surgeons and physicians are involved in multiple clinical trials focused on improving cancer, endometriosis, and fibroid treatment options.
A Multidisciplinary Approach to Care
In some cases, patients may have other surgical or medical needs that appear alongside their gynecological condition. They can access the coordinated care they need in Maimonides Doctors Multispecialty Pavilion. With a wide variety of providers in one location, patients can schedule routine visits, diagnostic tests, and non-surgical treatments without traveling between multiple buildings.
“We’re thinking about the patient from the holistic level with this strategy,” Dr. Michel says. “A lot of times, patients need more than surgery. They may need other treatments, like pelvic floor physical therapy, which can benefit their condition. At Maimonides, it’s all available in the same building as a one-stop-shop.”
This approach also streamlines a patient’s surgical care and reduces the risks associated with multiple procedures.
“We bring together different providers across multiple fields. Whenever we can, we work collaboratively to perform procedures at the same time,” she says. “For example, if a patient needs a hysterectomy for fibroids and they also have a pelvic floor issue, we will work alongside their urologic surgeon to complete those two procedures together.”
Expanding Access to Innovative Treatment
Although gynecological disease can affect any female patient, health disparities do exist. Individuals in racial and ethnic minority groups frequently face a higher risk of delayed diagnosis and more advanced disease. Traditional, open surgery is the more common treatment in those cases. But at Maimonides, our providers work with patients to offer an alternative whenever possible.
“Ultimately, we’re trying to decrease some of these disparities by providing patients with access to high volume surgeons who are able to perform these complex procedures minimally invasively instead via traditional laparotomy,” Dr. Michel says.
Overall, Maimonides is positioned to provide these innovative, patient-friendly services to a broader patient population.
“Maimonides is unique in its location, and the population we serve is diverse and vast. Many don’t have access to this kind of care,” she says. “We are increasing that reach and providing excellent quality care that people thought they could only receive in Manhattan. Instead, we’re offering access right here in our community.”
To learn more about Maimonides OB/GYN Specialty Services & Women’s Health Institute at https://maimo.org/treatments-care/obstetrics-and-gynecology/. To refer a patient, call (718) 283-9044.
