PESSARIES FOUNDATIONS Course
(formerly called Pessaries Introduction)
Comprehensive assessment, fitting, and management of vaginal pessaries
Develop the skills, systems, and confidence to successfully introduce pessary services into your clinical practice.
Pelvic organ prolapse affects up to 50% of women who have given birth, with many experiencing symptoms that impact exercise, work, intimacy, and quality of life.
Pessaries are a safe, effective, and evidence-based first-line treatment option for many women with pelvic organ prolapse. Yet many clinicians lack the training, confidence, and systems required to provide this valuable service.
The PESSARIES FOUNDATIONS Course is designed to bridge that gap.
This highly practical course provides everything you need to confidently assess, fit, manage, and monitor pessary patients in your clinic. Beyond clinical skills, you'll receive comprehensive templates, recall systems, business tools, and ongoing support to help you successfully implement pessary services immediately after completing the course.
Why Choose This Course?
Unlike many pessary courses that focus solely on fitting techniques, this programme teaches the complete pessary management pathway.
You'll learn how to:
- Assess pelvic organ prolapse accurately.
- Select the most appropriate pessary based on vaginal biomechanics.
- Safely fit and manage the three most commonly used pessaries (ring, cube, Gellhorn).
- Use speculum examinations to assess vaginal tissue suitability.
- Monitor outcomes and identify complications.
- Implement sustainable systems and recall processes within your clinic.
- Develop competency through post-course mentoring and support.
By the end of the course, you'll have both the clinical skills and operational systems required to confidently establish a pessary service.
What You'll Learn
Pelvic Organ Prolapse Assessment
Learn internationally recognised methods for assessing and documenting prolapse severity, including:
- Biomechanical assessment of vaginal dimensions and support structures.
- Full POP-Q Staging - using speculums and POPStix correctly to objectively measure prolapses
- Lying and standing prolapse examinations.
- Advanced prolapse palpation skills.
- Selection of the right pessary for the individual patient based on your objective measurement findings.
Speculum Assessment Skills
- Assessment of vaginal mucosal integrity.
- Cervical visualisation.
- Identification of tissue suitability for pessary use.
- Note: This courses speculum training focuses on assessment of vaginal mucosa for pessary suitability and does not teach diagnosis of gynaecological pathologies.
Pessary Fitting and Management
- Ring Pessary
- Cube Pessary
- Gellhorn Pessary
You'll learn:
- Pessary selection criteria
- Fitting techniques
- Troubleshooting common issues
- Follow-up protocols
- Patient self-management strategies
- Recognising complications and when to refer
- Precautions and contraindications for pessary management.
Conservative Management of Pelvic Organ Prolapse
Learn how pessaries fit within a broader patient-centred management plan, including:
- Pelvic floor muscle training
- Exercise and activity modification
- Bowel and bladder management
- Weight management considerations
- Lifestyle interventions
- Gain an understanding surgical pathways and options
- Prolapse prevalence, risk factors, and symptom presentation.
Whole-Person Pelvic Health
- Symptom monitoring tools
- Quality of life measures
- Clinical outcome tracking
- Ongoing patient review and recall systems
Practice Management and Business Systems
One of the most valuable aspects of this course is the practical framework you'll receive to help implement pessary services within your clinic.
You'll be provided with professionally developed resources including:
- Medical Screening Forms
- Patient Consent Forms
- Patient Education Handouts
- Pessary Information Booklets
- Self-Management Documentation
- Clinical Reporting Templates
- Recall and Follow-Up Systems
- Infection Control Protocols
- Equipment and Consumables Suppliers Guide
- Inventory Tracking Templates
- Clinical Governance Resources
You'll also receive access to "The Beast", Simon's comprehensive inventory and recall tracking system designed specifically for pessary management services.
Ongoing Support and Certification
Learning doesn't stop when the course ends. To support your transition into clinical practice, you will receive:
- Access to a private online support forum for 12 months.
- Monthly live Q&A sessions with Dr Melissa Davidson for 12 months.
- Ongoing troubleshooting support.
- Networking opportunities with fellow clinicians.
Competency Documentation
To ensure safe and effective clinical practice, participants complete a structured competency programme following the course before receiving their certification. Submitting this competency documentation is a requirement of completing the course.
Requirements include:
- Speculum examination logbook.
- Pessary fitting logbook.
- Clinical case study.
- Reflective statement.
- Peer review.
- Summary documentation of your clinic recall, and health and safety procedures.
Who is this course for?
Professions who can attend
This course is suitable for registered health professionals who assess and manage women with pelvic organ prolapse, including:
- Nurse Practitioners
- Registered Nurses
- Clinical Nurse Specialists
- Physiotherapists
- General Practitioners
- Gynaecologists
- Osteopaths
- Women's Health Clinicians
- Other registered health professionals
We typically have participants from a wide range of clinical backgrounds creating a valuable multidisciplinary learning environment.
Professional registration required
Participants must be registered health professionals in good standing with the relevant registration authority in their country, such as:
- Physiotherapy Board of New Zealand
- Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA)
- Osteopathic Council of New Zealand
- Nursing Council of New Zealand
- Medical Council of New Zealand
Experience required
This course is designed for health professionals who are already practising in the field of pelvic health and are experienced in performing internal vaginal examinations. For this course, "experienced" means you:
- Regularly perform vaginal examinations as part of your clinical practice
- Already provide conservative management for women with pelvic organ prolapse
- Are confident with basic pelvic health assessments and internal examination techniques
If you are new to pelvic health practice, we recommend gaining further experience before enrolling in this course.
All genders can attend
Health professionals of all genders are welcome to attend this course.
Course Outcomes
- Assess pelvic organ prolapse and pessary suitability.
- Perform speculum assessment and pessary fitting procedures.
- Manage pessary follow-up, outcomes, and complications.
- Educate patients in pessary care and self-management.
- Develop appropriate treatment plans and referral pathways.
- Establish and deliver a safe, evidence-based pessary service.
Learn from an Expert
Dr Melissa Davidson is New Zealand's only Specialist Physiotherapist in Pelvic Health and has more than 35 years of clinical experience.
Known for her engaging teaching style and evidence-based approach, Melissa makes complex pelvic health concepts easy to understand and immediately applicable in practice.
Read more in About Us
What Participants Say
"This course not only gives you everything you need to safely and competently fit and manage pessaries, but also thorough, evidence-based and up-to-date knowledge on pelvic organ prolapse." - Sara, Physiotherapist
"This comprehensive training course enabled me to feel competent and confident to assess, fit, and manage vaginal pessaries. The multidisciplinary learning experience was excellent." - Kate, Clinical Nurse Specialist
"As a GP with an interest in women's health, I found the skills learned essential. Highly informative and practical." - Christina, General Practitioner
"Great course! Clear and concise learning materials that give you the confidence to implement immediately clinically. Very clinically applicable to anyone managing women with prolapse." - Louise, Physiotherapist
"This course gave me the knowledge, skills, and administrative systems to be able to fit and manage pessaries in my patients. Melissa created a welcoming and non-intimidating environment." - Simone, Osteopath
"Melissa and Simon present a very comprehensive learning package, complete with post-course competencies and ongoing support. Highly recommend. It is worth every cent and every minute of your time." - Sharon, Nurse Practitioner
"I have done a number of Melissa's courses now and they just keep getting better! This course was absolutely amazing. I walked away feeling so satisfied, motivated and eager to continue my work in this field."- Rebecca, Physiotherapist
"Fantastic course! Presented in several ways to appeal to all learning styles" - Ella, General Practitioner
"I am an RN working in women's health for many years. I have been searching for a course that would provide me with knowledge and experience to enhance existing skills and provide the best care for wahine that I see in clinic. Learning from such a highly skilled physiotherapist has added a new dimension to my understanding. Melissa keeps it real, provides great resources, uses very descriptive examples, and plenty of humor! Brilliant course, thoroughly recommend to any RN working in women's health." - Helen, Nurse
"Thank you for this wonderfully structured course. You are an engaging educator and it was a delight to learn even after a long week of work, life and travel. Your education leaves me with more clarity and confidence about offering pessary services and some optimist and points of reflection too. You really role model a great balance of directness, humor, and compassion" - Rachael, Medical Doctor