Urology is Fun – Top Five Highlights from AUA23

Every year urologists from across the globe join together at the American Urological Association’s 2023 Annual Meeting (AUA23) to learn about new technologies and research, level up their skills, and network with colleagues old and new. While the conference focuses on important medical topics and technological improvements, the world of urology can be more fun than you may expect. Beyond the endless free food and drinks throughout the McCormick Place Science and Technology Hall, vendors and the Association demonstrated that urology can be fun by offering urological puns, swag, and cool activities to stay engaged.

Here are our top five favorite ways that urology was humorous and engaging at AUA23:

Capturing memories with photo ops

If there wasn’t a photo, did it really happen? When entering the Science and Technology Hall, a huge AUA23 signage sculpture greeted all attendees and welcomed them to all things urology. This large welcoming display offered a place for all types of attendees to take group photos and show their excitement to kick off the weekend.

Other companies like PUSEN Medical joined in on the fun by having staged photo opportunities in their booth for attendees to save the memories of meeting friends at the event.

Urine good hands with AUA swag

When AUA said “Urine good hands,” they really meant it. By offering attendees creative swag with the best puns, items were flying off the shelves. With urology themed shirts, ties, slippers, and plushies, there were items for everyone to enjoy. Our team’s favorites were the hilarious buttons to help us decorate our lanyards.

Eye-catching themed booths

Some companies picked a theme and went all out to incorporate it into every aspect of their booth. Accord BioPharma brought their booth “A game” and used a billiards theme that really came to life with a pool table and bar for visitors to enjoy, complete with LED neon signs. Urovant Sciences also created a fully immersive, visual experience. Their tropical theme included everything from plants and refreshing frozen treats to a prop bamboo outhouse (supporting urology) as well as interactive, digital activities for visitors. We couldn’t resist stopping by their booth each day to admire the progress on the custom sand art that was sculpted over the course of the event.

Keeping urology fun

There were a lot of opportunities to have fun and win prizes at AUA23. Janssen themed their booth similar to a football field with their turf-like carpet, complete with hash marks, and an area where attendees test their passing skills to get a high score. Gemini Medical Technologies let attendees try their luck in their “cash grab” machine where attendees earned a Starbucks gift card for participating and those that found the golden ticket were entered into a drawing for a Bose Speaker.

Learning the history

Of course, one of the main purposes of AUA23 was education. The AUA William P. Didusch Center for Urologic History’s Battlefield Urology booth educated attendees on some of the interesting origins of modern day urology practices that resulted from wartime. There were a variety of techniques that were created and validated by caring for soldiers, as well as lessons learned from failed attempts. Click here to experience the online version of their booth for yourself.

Needless to say, our team worked hard and also had a blast at AUA23! We may have even danced to some Urethra Franklin! 

We can’t wait to see what fun next year brings at AUA24 in San Antonio! Be sure to meet us at our booth 801!