Page 12 - Focus on REPRODUCTION SEP 2015

ESHRE’s new Executive Committee for 2015-2017: from left, Borut Kovacic (SI), Basak Balaban (TR), Andres Salumets (EE), Grigoris Grimbizis (GR), Mariette Goddijn (NL), Roy Farquharson (GB, Chairman Elect), Helen Kendrew (Paramedical Board), Kersti Lundin (Chairman), Tatjana Motrenko (ME), Juha Tapanainen (FI, Past Chairman), Cristina Magli (IT, SIG Committee), Rita Vassena (ES), Petra De Sutter (BE), Nicholas Macklon (GB) and Georg Griesinger (DE).
randomised study of pre-IVF outpatient hysteroscopy in women with recurrent IVF failure, and in its final stages of preparation (for submission to the New England Journal of Medicine).
- A consensus on the diagnosis of female genital tract anomalies, supported by ESHRE and the European Society for Gynaecological Endoscopy, is in its final steps before publication in the ESHRE pages of Human Reproduction and Gynaecological Surgery.
ESHRE research grant
- The Chairman described response to ESHRE’s research grant scheme as ‘remarkable’, with 259 applications. The first grant was awarded to a joint UK/Italy project to prevent ovarian damage from chemotherapy. The winning co-ordinator was Professor Norah Spears from Edinburgh. The next award will be made in 2016, with a call for proposals on the ESHRE website in February 2016. High ranking proposals will be assessed over two rounds.
Guidelines
- Guidelines on the Management of women with endometriosis were published in 2013, and on Routine psychosocial care and medically assisted reproduction in April 2014 (with full text available on the ESHRE website). A summary of the endometriosis guidelines has been submitted to Human Reproduction for publication, while a patient information booklet is in preparation.
- Three other guidelines are in development: on premature ovarian insufficiency; recurrent miscarriage; and as revised guidelines for good practice in IVF laboratories.
ESHRE accreditation and certification
- Certification is now available to ESHRE members in embryology, reproductive endoscopy, and fertility nursing.
- By the end of 2014 the cumulative total of certified clinical embryologists was 1100 (with 643 certified at the senior level). - Certification for reproductive endoscopic surgeons (ECRES), introduced in 2013, is on two levels, level 1 (bachelor) and level
2 (endoscopic surgeon), and assesses both practical and theoretical skills. In 2014 five candidates applied and four passed at level 1; eight candidates from 11 applicants were successful in the level 2 exam.
- Eleven centres have so far been accredited under ESHRE’s joint programme for accreditation of subspecialist training programmes with the European Board and College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology (EBCOG).
Special Interest Groups
- Elections for co-ordinators and deputies have been held, and new steering committees are now in place. The Chairman advised that updates and information are available on the ESHRE website.
5. ESHRE journals
- Speaking on behalf of the Publications Sub-committee, Hans Evers, Editor-in-Chief of Human Reproduction, reported that last year’s impact factors ranked Human Reproduction Update and Human Reproduction as the top two journals in the categories of Obstetrics and Gynaecology and Reproductive Biology, with MHR fourth in the latter category.
- Evers reported that print subscriptions to all OUP journals were on the decline, from 20% in 2013 to an estimated 15% in 2015. Declines in print subscriptions are most apparent in UK, USA, Germany and Japan. This shift, said Evers, has implications: that the online version is now the version of record, and that the main perspective is now ‘web, mobile, tablet and iPhone’. Amid considerations of open access, Evers reminded the meeting that Oxford Open (including the ESHRE journals) can provide immediate full open access if required, and free access to all after 12 months,
- Evers, who paid tribute to his fellow editors Chris Barratt and Felice Petraglia, emphasised that ‘peer review is at the core of our business’, and pointed out that, from 2000+ papers submitted to Human Reproduction each year, the average paper had five authors, and required the expertise of five reviewers and editors.
12 Focus on Reproduction // SEPTEMBER 2015