WFNS President’s Report Najia El-Abbadi Rabat, Morocco
Background: The World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies (WFNS) is an international federation meant to gather all the continental and national societies of neurological surgeons. Every 2 years, a new executive committee is elected. The new mandate started on the 7th of December in Cape Town, during the World Congress. For this mandate, the executive committee elected by democratic vote is led by an African Arab woman as president. The goal of this report is to share the vision of the new administrative council for the 2 years to come. Opportunity: My democratic election as President of the WFNS is above all an opportunity. For me, it is an opportunity to serve the noble cause of bettering the conditions for the practice of neurosurgery. And for us it is an opportunity to strengthen our neurosurgical community worldwide, in the beauty of its diversity, and its ability to weather hardships. These times call for an improved governance through participatory management built in an environment of cohesion and unity. We need to finetune our work environment to pursue our mission. And as an administration, our mission is to have a stronger federation that could bridge the gap in neurosurgical care. Goals: Our vision for the WFNS in the upcoming years can be spread in 3 main goals: 1. Expanding the neurosurgical workforce by providing more opportunities for training and fellowships 2. Improving the financial resources of the WFNS and their distribution 3. Reinforcing neurosurgical care in countries in need
Our ambition relies overall on following, consolidating and developing adaptive WFNS programs all over the world to answer local requirements. To reach our objectives, creativity and coordination must be in order. Coming from an LMIC is fully comprehending the fact that local populations have a better understanding of their needs and the real extent of their resources. It is only then that one can mobilize the tools in hand and, with the help of well built creative programs, use them to bring to completion real improvements to the state of neurosurgical care in less fortunate regions. Providing more resources at that point will allow to further this progression and ultimately achieve a more synergistical evolution of neurosurgical care around the world. Following the African example of training centers will create new sponsored opportunities for basic training in, as well as fellowships to further trainees’ careers to more subspecialized and academic profiles in LMICs. This can be achieved by increasing the fundraising possibilities through new international partnerships, which is part of our second objective. For the WFNS administration, fundraising is considered day-to-day work. As a prelude, a preliminary agreement has been reached with the Moroccan Government to sponsor the training of African neurosurgeons with a donation of $100,000 US to be effective soon. The training capacity of the WFNS Rabat Training Center (RTC) will be doubled, allowing us to train qualified neurosurgeons in less time and reduce the deficiency in the neurosurgical workforce in many LMIC, starting in Africa. Sharing these experiences with other training centers is the spirit we instill through the WFNS. It must be carried out by all of the neurosurgical workforce around the world. It is obvious that this is only a preamble to many projects to come. More inclusive and international programs will be drafted in the frame of bringing adaptive assistance internationally. Our aim is to extend a helping hand to anyone who needs it, and through that create a sense of belonging to a global neurosurgery. Synergy in action is mandatory to achieve better neurosurgical care for all human beings. It starts with sharing experiences with other referral centers as well as governmental institutions. Our common purpose is to establish a sustainable homogeneous program of neurosurgical training through supporting different centers for training around the world. The Federation needs strong finances to face difficult times and to invest more in developing neurosurgery. Diversifying the income of the WFNS is key. Existing resources need to be mobilized by increasing members and donations. Lessons were drawn from past successes and must be utilized in rationalizing expanses. But thinking outside the box will also be required to stretch those resources – allowing governments and international institutions to join this global movement for neurosurgical care for all. Global Consensus: Evidently, one of the main focus points of this mandate will be to pass over a blazing neurosurgical torch to the next generation of neurosurgeons. It is our role as leaders to teach, but better even, to establish more departments for practicing neurosurgery and learning it in the best conditions possible. But also by providing equipment and the most important requirement of all, transfer of experience and knowledge. This can only be achieved through harmony of action through a global consensus for education and training in neurosurgery. It will aim at 4 objectives: 1. Strengthen educational activities internationally 2. Support new technology for sharing knowledge 3. Learning on simulation and hands on workshops 4. Increasing the number of local training programs and referral centers To carry out these objectives, a large array of means will be involved, including: 1. Gaining the full support of the WFNS Foundation 2. A participative role of the WFNS Committees to develop a full package program to be duplicated and adapted to different centers 3. The establishment of an education and training committee 4. Ad hoc committees 5. Synergy in action with specialized societies 6. Facilitating exchange programs between HICs and LMICs It is only through teamwork and belief in our collective sheer humanity that we can deliver such a future. The Federation prides itself on being world above all and we wish for the 2 years to come to encourage and feed the spirit of belonging and inclusion into this global community in order to attain a homogeneous progress of care for our patients. No step is too small in the scale of saving a life.
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