Patrick O’ Dwyer
Patrick O’Dwyer qualified in Cork. He trained in Cork, Harvard Medical School and Ohio State University. He returned to the UK and was lecturer in Surgey in Dublin and prior to becoming Senior Lecturer in Glasgow. He was appointed Professor of Surgery in Glasgow in 1998.
His surgical interests include abdominal sarcomas, adrenal tumours and all aspects of hernia surgery. He has been the Principal Investigator in several clinical trials, including the MRC trial of laparoscopic hernia repair and the recent trial of operation or observation in painless inguinal hernias. He is the author of over 130 peer reviewed publications,10 invited reviews and 18 book chapters. He is an external examiner for UC Dublin and Queens University Belfast. He is the current President of the British Hernia Society.
Andrew Kingsnorth
Andrew Kingsnorth graduated in London, and trained in Oxford and Edinburgh. He was Senior Lecturer in Liverpool for 9 years before becoming Professor of Surgery in Plymouth in 1996. Special interests are pancreatico-biliary surgery and abdominal wall hernias. In 2005 he founded the charity Operation Hernia whose mission is to provide assistance to Hernia suffers in Ghana. He was vice-President of the European Hernia Society (1998-2007). He founded and is a past president of the British Hernia Society and is currently President of the European Hernia Society (2007-10).
Joachim Conze
Joachim Conze is a consultant general surgeon in the Department of Surgery of the University Hospital in Aachen, Germany. His clinical and research interests are in the field of herniology, with a major focus on clinical and experimental studies with biomaterials. He has been part of the Aachen Hernia Research Group with Prof. Schumpelick and Prof. Klinge for more than 14 years. He is a regular contributor to national and international congresses on herniology and has published numerous articles and books chapters on the topic. He conducts National and International workshops on open incisional hernia repair and is one of the founder members and General Secretary of the German Hernia Society. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/bv.fcgi?rid=surg.chapter.4319
David deFriend
David deFriend qualified in Dundee and trained in surgery in Manchester. He is currently Consultant General / Colorectal Surgeon at Torbay Hospital, Devon, and Training Program Director for South West Peninsula Deanery. His surgical interests include laparoscopic surgery, hernia surgery, and the management of complex abdominal wall defects.
He has extensive experience with biological meshes, which he has used for the repair of complex abdominal wall defects including parastomal hernias. He will be sharing with us his knowledge and personal experience with thesemeshes, discussing their indications, limitations and pitfalls.
David Bennett
David Bennett qualified at King's College School of Medicine and completed his higher surgical training in Exeter and the Southwest of England. He is a Consultant General Surgeon at the Royal Bournemouth Hospital. His specialist interests are oesophagogastric (luminal) surgery and minimally invasive surgery. He has run workshops in both laparoscopic TEP inguinal hernia surgery and laparoscopic ventral and incisional hernia surgery. The Royal Bournemouth Hospital is currently a Bard Hernia Centre of Excellence.
Andrew deBeaux
Andrew deBeaux graduated in Aberdeen, and trained in Aberdeen andEdinburgh. He spent one year in Adelaide before returning to the UK to take up a consultant post in Edinburgh. He is a general surgeon interested in all aspects of hernia surgery; he repairs incisional hernias using either an open or laparoscopic technique. He runs regular “hands-on” laparoscopic hernia training courses.
Brian Stephenson
Brian Stephenson qualified at St Bartholomew's Hospital in London and trained in surgery in South Africa, Cardiff, Leeds and London. He is a Consultant General & Colorectal Surgeon at The Royal Gwent Hospital, Newport. His interests include groin hernia surgery and the prevention and treatment of stoma hernias. He has a particular interest in repair under local anaesthesia, and sutureless mesh techniques. He regularly runs a popular “hands-on” mesh hernia training course.
Martin Kurzer
Martin Kurzer graduated at University College Hospital London, and trained in London. He spent two years in the USA, carrying out research into wound healing. He is a surgeon at the British Hernia Centre in London. He has an interest in all aspects of hernia surgery, particularly local anaesthetic ambulatory repair. He is a reviewing editor for the journal Hernia.
David Ralph
David Ralph qualified at St Bartholomew’s hospital, London. He was appointed Consultant Urologist at St Peter's Hospital, Institute of Urology, University College London and University College Hospital, London in 1996. His specialty interests are andrology erectile dysfunction, male infertility, penile cancer and penile reconstruction. He runs infertility courses as part of the UCH IVF Centre, teaching techniques of microsurgery. He has written extensively on male infertility.