Education and Training Committee Report

Education and Training Committee Report
Isabelle M. Germano, Chair (2017-2021)

It has been an honor and a pleasure to lead the WFNS Education and Training Committee over the past 4 years. I am particularly grateful to the co-chairs Prof. Hiroyuki Kinouchi (2017- 2019) and Satoshi Kuroda (2019-2021) and to the 30 committee members, listed on our web, representing 5 continents for their dedication and hard work. The mission of WFNS Education and Training Committee (E&TC) is to facilitate Neurosurgery Education and Training throughout the world with particular attention to low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) by providing educational courses onsite and online, web-based material, publications. Educating the next generation of neurosurgeons is a great privilege and responsibility for our specialty. This evolving process will ensure our patients who require neurosurgical treatment receive excellent care, no matter where they are in the world.

Over the past 4 years, our education activities have focused on the following areas: partner-ship with local emerging neurosurgery society, communication with neurosurgery societies no yet/longer part of WFNS, recognition by Institutions/governments as point-of-reference when neurosurgical education is needed, partnership with continental societies, on-site education and training, publications, collaborations with other WFNS standing committees and meetings. A particular thank you to the WFNS Young Neurosurgeon Committee for their involvement in with our committee and thoughtful work on Covid-19 education useful to all of us¹. The WFNS E&TC complements the work of the WFNS Foundation by providing on-site short courses. These range from didactic sessions, to interactive discussion between senior faculty and young trainees, and hands-on mock-surgical training. Additionally, we provide all these components combined in a format referred to as boot-camp. During the Covid-19 pandemic, health safety issues precluded the in-person on-site training by substituting virtual on site training. Over the past 3 years, the E&TC activities took place in more than 30 countries located in Africa, South/Central America and South-East Asia, as shown in the figure below.

Following is a brief description of our most recent educational activities, including our last two on-site in-person.

-Vina del Mar, Chile; October 9, 2019. In collaboration with the Chilean Society of Neurosurgery and the South Cone Neurosurgery Society, the ET&C organized a boot camp for neurosurgery residents and young neurosurgeons with didactic lectures and hands-on experience

-Dubai, UAE, Oct 31-Nov 1, 2019. In collaboration with the Pan Arab Neurosurgery Society, the ET&C organized a ½ symposium focused on challenges in degenerative, traumatic and metastatic spine surgery.

-AANS Apr 2020, Practical Course: Neurosurgery around the world: Education & other opportunities

-PanArab Society and Moroccan Neurosurgical Society, Jun 6, 2020: Current Management of High-grade glioma. An interactive course

-WFNS Global Neurosurgery Committee, Jun 13, 2020: Education and Training during the Covid-19 pandemic

-Brazilian Neurosurgery Society, Jun 29-Jul 3, 2020: WFNS Education Committee Week

-Algerian Neurosurgical Society, Jul 16, 2020: Advances in glioma treatment: Surgical aspects-Argentinian Neurosurgical Society, Jul 17, 2020: Existing opportunity to enhance the YNS education and training

-WFNS Young Neurosurgeon, Jul 18 2 020: Brain Tumor Surgery: challenges & opportunities

-Mexican Neurosurgical Society, Jul 23, 2020: Interactive case discussion with the young neurosurgeons

-Pakistan Neurosurgery Society, Sep 6, 2020: Inauguration of Pakistan Neuro-oncology Society and first meeting: “Education and guidelines in LMIC”

-CAANS & Egyptian Neurosurgical Society, Sep 19, 2020: Patient’s safety in Neurosurgery

The WFNS E&TC also facilitates efforts in gathering and exchanging information about neurosurgical training in different countries. In the recent JNS Neurosurgical Focus, entitled: “Neurosurgical International Education” similarities and differences of training programs around the world were compared and contrasted². Gathering and publishing this information allowed us to understand the status of neurosurgery training and to identify the challenges and opportunities while building the next training programs. Ultimately, it is also important to continue attracting to our profession the best and the brightest. In particularly, we believe that sharing the passion for our profession with the children of the world could inspire them to become neurosurgeons³.
Unless you have dreams, they cannot come true!

¹ Barthelemy E, World Neurosurgery 2020 PMID: 33249221
² Germano IM, Neurosurg Focus 2020; PMID: 32114545
³ https://fundacionhospitaloptimista.org/neurosurgeon-ebook/

The WFNS E&TC educational activities took place in over 30 countries around the world.