“I was always into staying busy, into my goals, into making notes and planning. I’m not one who truly lives in the past.”—Richard Simmons

And just like that, it is fall again. Football season, crisp mornings, the AUA In-Service Exam and Abstract deadline, and AUA Section meetings sprinkled throughout the autumn months. With the majority of AUA Sections running meetings between September and November, it is a busy time for many of us, and the Office of Education is excited to continue to provide accreditation for these conferences. I myself am looking forward to returning to the Bayou this October to spend some time with my Mid-Atlantic AUA Section colleagues.

As a surgically driven field, “hands-on” training remains critical for urologists to gain and maintain proficiency of skills. The AUA Office of Education is committed to providing opportunities for our membership, and we are delighted to offer 2 skills training opportunities this fall.

On September 17, 2022, the Office of Education will host a hands-on ultrasound course at the AUA Headquarters (Linthicum, Maryland) led by course director Chris Porter, MD from Virginia Mason Medical Center. This course will focus on performance of ultrasound in urological practice, which satisfies increasing requirements of documented training for third-party payers. Then on November 12 and 13, 2022, the AUA’s practical percutaneous nephrolithotomy course will be offered at the Smith Institute for Urology, with David Hoenig, MD serving as course director. For many years, the AUA has offered this course to provide education on patient selection, access techniques, lithotripsy devices, and exit strategies post-procedure. Both of these courses are open for registration, and we encourage you and your colleagues to take advantage of these educational resources for practice-based learning.

For residents and fellows who were unable to attend the course, “The Evolving Landscape of Advanced Prostate Cancer Treatment,” offered in New Orleans (AUA2022), we are delighted to offer a complimentary virtual course on September 19 and 20, 2022. This course, presented in partnership with the Society of Urologic Oncology, is designed to be an interactive forum and will focus on the updated 2020 AUA Guidelines on Metastatic Hormone Sensitive Prostate Cancer and Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer. Discussions will focus on various case scenarios encountered in clinical practice and will integrate up-to-date information on the role of genetic testing in advanced prostate cancer as well as novel imaging and drug therapies (including immunotherapy and PARP inhibitors). Registration is open on AUAUniversity (https://auau.auanet.org/).

The 2022 In-Service Exam and Oncology Knowledge Assessment Test are scheduled for November 19, 2022. We do not expect any changes to either the format or the structure of this year’s exams, and believe they are an outstanding tool for trainees and programs to benchmark knowledge base and areas of focus for education. To help prepare for these exams, I strongly recommend using 2 of our apps. The new AUAUniversity app is 100% free as a member benefit, available on Apple or Android platforms, and includes the AUA Guidelines, Core Curriculum, Surgical Video Library, and access to much more content. In addition, the Self-Assessment Study Program app houses approximately 1,650 questions that have been compiled over the past 11 years, and users can complete these in a topic-based deck or random question order, whichever you prefer.

Finally, the Office of Education will once again offer our genitourinary cancer series this fall on the AUAUniversity Podcast. This series of free episodes will focus on the newest and most evolving areas in urologic oncology, spanning diagnosis, staging, treatment, surveillance, and survivorship for patients. It is always my pleasure to host conversations with thought leaders in our field.

Whether you want to participate in a course, listen to a podcast as you work out or commute from work, or do a quick content search on the AUAUniversity app, the Office of Education is working on your behalf to provide education, clinical information, and resources to help you in your daily practice.

As always, I welcome your feedback. Please feel free to contact us at education@auanet.org.