W. L. Gore & Associates Joins Americas Hernia Society Quality Collaborative (AHSQC) As Silver Sponsor

Partnership latest step in Gore’s ongoing commitment to improve quality of care for hernia patients

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc. (Gore) has joined the Americas Hernia Society’s Quality Collaborative (AHSQC) as a Silver Level Foundation Partner. Through the analysis of data collected from physicians based on real-world patients, the AHSQC aims to identify new best practices to advance outcomes and optimize costs in hernia care. The AHSQC also provides ongoing performance feedback to clinicians through collaborative learning.

“Gore’s legacy of commitment and innovation to this field aligns well with the Collaborative’s goals.”

The AHSQC was formed in 2013 by hernia surgeons in private practice and academic settings to fulfill the Americas Hernia Society mission of providing the right operation for the right patient at the right time. With more than 13,000 patients and 180 surgeons enrolled, the AHSQC provides an online quality tool that measures surgeon performance, assesses best practices, and enhances decision-making capabilities in an effort to advance surgical care.

“The associates of Gore Medical work with the medical community to touch lives every day by improving patient outcomes,” said David Lane, Business Unit Leader for General Medical Products at Gore. “By joining with AHSQC as a Foundation Partner, we reaffirm our commitment to ensuring that our products result in quality experiences for both the physician and the patient, as well as innovating to solve other unmet medical needs.”

The AHSQC Silver Level Partnership is the most recent example of Gore’s longstanding involvement in advancing clinical outcomes for hernia repair. Gore also continuously seeks to improve patient outcomes in hernia repair by bringing new devices to market. The launch of GORE® SYNECOR Biomaterial in March 2016 represented a new innovation in hernia repair by creating a hybrid of permanent and absorbable technologies offering a solution of both permanent strength and rapid vascularity.

This follows the introduction of GORE® BIO-A® Tissue Reinforcement, a disruptive technology that created an entirely new category termed “biosynthetic” for the hernia market. The synthetically designed, yet fully absorbable, product is available for use in complex hernia repairs at a fraction of the cost of historically used biologic mesh. GORE BIO-A Tissue Reinforcement was the only biosynthetic featured in the recently published Complex Open Bioabsorbable Reconstruction of the Abdominal Wall (COBRA)* study demonstrating favorable performance in contaminated ventral hernia repair and improved quality of life for patients.

These activities complement Gore’s Foundation Partnership with AHSQC and the Company’s commitment to improving the quality of hernia care.

“It’s important to have partners such as Gore who are dedicated to high quality on board with the AHSQC program in order to continue to drive progress in hernia care,” said AHSQC Medical Director Michael J. Rosen, MD, FACS, Cleveland, Ohio. “Gore’s legacy of commitment and innovation to this field aligns well with the Collaborative’s goals.”

Gore has been a member of the Americas Hernia Society (AHS) Corporate Alliance, a group of manufacturers committed to supporting scientific programs for more than ten years. The AHSQC partnership reaffirms Gore’s dedication to the Americas Hernia Society and hernia patient care. Gore continues to grow its role as a provider of education in innovative hernia products through peer-to-peer educational opportunities for surgeons.

Please visit goremedical.com/hernia for more information.

* Rosen M, Bauer JJ, Harmaty M, et al. Multicenter, prospective, longitudinal study of the recurrence, surgical site infection, and quality of life after contaminated ventral hernia repair using biosynthetic absorbable mesh: the COBRA Study. Annals of Surgery 2017;265(1):205-211.

ABOUT AHSQC

Through data collection, analysis, and collaborative learning, the AHSQC provides best practices, decision support, care pathways and ongoing performance feedback to participants and partners. The AHSQC is a CMS Qualified Clinical Data Registry and is an authoritative resource for organizations to assess quality metrics and demonstrate a commitment to efficient, value-based, and patient-centered hernia care.

ABOUT W. L. GORE & ASSOCIATES

W. L. Gore & Associates is a global materials science company dedicated to transforming industries and improving lives. Founded in 1958, Gore has built a reputation for solving complex technical challenges in the most demanding environments — from revolutionizing the outerwear industry with GORE-TEX® fabric to creating medical devices that improve and save lives to enabling new levels of performance in the aerospace, pharmaceutical and mobile electronics markets, among other industries. The company is also known for its strong, team-oriented culture and continued recognition from the Great Place to Work® Institute. Headquartered in Newark, Del., Gore employs approximately 10,000 Associates and generates annual revenues that exceed $3 billion. www.gore.com

MEDICAL PRODUCTS DIVISION

Gore Medical Products Division engineers devices that treat a range of cardiovascular and other health conditions. With more than 40 million medical devices implanted over the course of more than 40 years, Gore builds on its legacy of improving patient outcomes through research, education and quality initiatives. Product performance, ease of use and quality of service provide sustainable cost savings for physicians, hospitals and insurers. Gore is joined in service with clinicians and through this collaboration we are improving lives. www.goremedical.com

Products listed may not be available in all markets.

GORE®, BIO-A®, and SYNECOR® designs are trademarks of W. L. Gore & Associates.

Contacts

CG Life for W. L. Gore & Associates
Erik Clausen
+1 (858) 457-2436
GoreMedical@cglife.com

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