Endoscopic suturing is a rapidly developing endoscopic advancement. For established endoscopists, there have been no pathways to developing skills in this complex technique, until now.

The ASGE Fundamentals of Suturing STAR Certificate Program prepares endoscopists to overcome challenges, gain confidence and demonstrate their “readiness” to perform endoscopic suturing to medical colleagues.

The enrollment criteria described below is intended to give potential participants an idea of the basic skill levels expected of program participants, and the skills that are needed to successfully perform endoscopic suturing. Enrollees should have:

• A minimum of two years in practice post-fellowship
• Performed at least 500 upper and lower endoscopies independently, and currently performing colonoscopy as part of daily practice
• Proficiency in basic endoscopy, hemostasis, and injection techniques

After successfully completing all components of this program, attendees should be able to:

• Understand the indications for suturing and the types of suturing patterns
• Apply suturing techniques to be able to apply the various fundamental suturing patterns
• Troubleshoot for common problems with suturing

Windows Requirements: Operating system: Windows 7+
Browser: Internet Explorer 8+, Firefox 10+, Google Chrome 10+
Internet connection: DSL, cable modem, or other high-speed connection
Flash: Adobe® Flash® Player 12+

Macintosh Requirements:
Operating system: Mac OS X 10.6.8+
Browser: Mozilla Firefox 10+, Safari 5+, Google Chrome 10+
Internet connection: DSL, cable modem, or other high-speed connection
Flash: Adobe® Flash® Player 12+

Prior to the skills-training component, enrollees will be required to complete several online components in sequence:
• Baseline assessment. This test will provide the enrollee an initial assessment of their knowledge.
• Literature. Participants will read and review guidelines, technology reviews and key articles.
• Instructional videos. Participants will view instructional videos from the ASGE Endoscopic Learning Library (ELL).
• Interval assessment. Enrollees will re-take the baselline assessment following the online instructional components. Participants will receive automatic feedback and references after completing the assessment.
• Participants will earn CME credit at the completion of the online curriculum.

The Baseline Assessment is used to measure your baseline knowledge in this topic area. The assessment should take you no longer than 30 minutes to complete. After completing the baseline assessment you will have access to many pre-course materials including guidelines, articles, and videos. Please watch all videos and complete the Interval Assessment prior to your arrival. You will earn CME & MOC credits for reviewing all this online material and completing all assessments.

For technical difficulties, please contact ASGE between the hours of 8:30am and 5pm Central Time at 1-866-353-ASGE (2743). For questions related to content or CME credits, please email education@asge.org.