VirtaMed has announced a partnership with Ferring Pharmaceuticals to expand global access to simulation training for embryo transfers. The extended program is scheduled to start in February 2022 in Europe and South Africa and will be brought to Asia in April, starting in Singapore with many more countries to follow.
The American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) has successfully run a series of simulation training workshops at their annual meeting and other events in the US. Ferring Pharmaceuticals joined this initiative in 2018, launching its educational program in Argentina, Brazil and the US using the ASRM Embyro Transfer Simulator, to successfully perform more than 80 events with more than 700 doctors participating.
“Every year, millions of people around the world experience fertility issues, and often seek IVF treatment to support their family building journeys,” said Dr Gaurang Daftary, Global Science Vice President, Reproductive Medicine and Maternal Health, Ferring Pharmaceuticals. “Using cutting edge technology to support the education of reproductive endocrinologists who perform this crucial stage during IVF is vital – this is why Ferring is investing in the global roll-out of this initiative.”
The ASRM launched an initiative in 2015 to standardize training for the embryo transfer procedure, the critical moment when a reproductive embryologist transfers a fertilized embryo into the uterus. Their pioneering work resulted in the creation of a standardized protocol for embryo transfer. Together with VirtaMed, the ASRM developed a high tech simulator that brought this standardized protocol to life, with real-time guidance and proficiency-based feedback. This was the first step to democratizing training, transposing the protocol into an interactive teaching simulator that reproductive endocrinologists could repeatedly use to gain the required skills using a replica patient model, transabdominal ultrasound, transfer catheters and a syringe.
As demonstrated by a validation study published in 2021, this revolutionary training simulator not only improves the necessary surgical skills, it also gives the next generation of reproductive endocrinologists the confidence to perform this important procedure while giving the best possible patient care.
“This partnership between Ferring and VirtaMed creates a true global impact in medical education,” noted Stefan Tuchschmid, Co-CEO of VirtaMed. “While the goal is scaling best-in-class training, first in mind are the hopes and fears of everyone undertaking IVF treatment and making sure we are doing everything we can to increase the chance of success.”