The MINT Course Fosters Multidisciplinary Collaboration in Management of Digestive Disease

Gastroenterologists, surgeons, advanced practice providers, nurses, and dietitians that treat patients with digestive disease tend to operate independently rather than collaborating to deliver comprehensive, multidisciplinary patient care.

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Kumar Krishnan, MD, a gastroenterologist at Massachusetts General Hospital, and Charu Paranjape, MD, MBBS, a surgeon at Mass General and the chief of the Division of General Surgery at Newton-Wellesley Hospital, have both experienced this issue firsthand.

To meet this unsolved need, they launched a course focused on the coordinated care of patients with digestive disorders, creating a platform for all providers to learn the latest and most cutting-edge therapies to treat their patients.

The fourth annual "Minimally Invasive and Novel Therapeutics (MINT)" course will take place on September 8-10, 2024. Accredited by Mass General Brigham, the conference offers both in-person didactics and hands-on courses as well as the option for virtual attendance.

"Many of us become highly specialized in our practice and in doing so become very siloed," Dr. Paranjape says. "MINT is a disease-based conference where we all come together to talk about complex digestive disorders, our patients, and how we can best coordinate their care."

The MINT conference offers 16+ continuing medical education credits (CMEs) for physicians and continuing education units (CEUs) for nurses.

Covering Cutting-edge Information and Coordinated Care Delivery

Over the course of three days, MINT attendees will explore issues including medical, surgical, pharmacologic, and diet/lifestyle management as well as endoluminal therapy.

The sessions will present cutting-edge information on a variety of topics related to the care of foregut diseases including heartburn and reflux, antireflux surgery and redo fundoplication, achalasia and esophageal motility disorders, and more. This year, we will have a dedicated session on the growing field of bariatric medicine with input from surgeons, endoscopists, and medical bariatricians.

MINT 2024 also offers optional hands-on sessions in endoluminal therapies, robotic surgery, including a cadaveric robotic lab and a dedicated course for residents.

"Gastroenterologists and surgeons bring their own unique perspectives to help understand the ideal management strategies," Dr. Krishnan says.

"Obviously you need expertise in health care delivery, but then you must also be able to deliver that expertise," Dr. Paranjape says. "I think that's something we can all do better and that will always be intrinsic to this course."

Providers from all areas of foregut health care are invited to attend this course including doctors, physician assistants, nurses, dietitians, and other advanced practice providers.

"Advanced practice providers are an integral part of all aspects of health care delivery today," Dr. Paranjape says. "They are a key part of our team at every step, whether in the operating room or the clinic, and are often the first person to interact with our patients."

Accordingly, the conference will devote one extended session toward a series of topics particularly relevant to advanced practice providers. "But it's important to note that physicians and surgeons are welcome to attend this session as well, as we want to bring together everyone to talk about these issues," Paranjape says.

Future Advancements

Over the past several decades, many effective new interventions have emerged for the minimally invasive approach to complex digestive disorders. Dr. Paranjape is particularly excited about advancements in endoluminal care, robotics and minimally invasive surgery.

"We are very interested in advancing novel minimally invasive endoscopic therapies in the pre-clinical research lab and integrated into clinical care," says Dr. Krishnan.

Both physicians have integrated innovations like these into their clinical practices and enjoy sharing what they have learned so far with course participants.

"I'm extremely optimistic about where things are headed with the management of foregut disease. Endoluminal care is a big part of it—that's what's going to drive most of the advancements in the next few years," Dr. Paranjape says. "Plus, we as a community have come to realize that practicing together is the right thing to do. A forum like MINT is important in that sense."

View the course agenda here

Register for MINT 2023 here