Saniya Mediratta1,2, Laura Lippa3, Sara Venturini4, Andreas K Demetriades5, Abdessamad El-Ouahabi6, Maria L Gandía-González7,8, William Harkness9, Peter Hutchinson4,10, Kee B Park11, Katrin Rabiei12, Gail Rosseau13, Karl Schaller14, Franco Servadei15,16, Jesus Lafuente17, Angelos G Kolias4,10. 1. Division of Neurosurgery, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Addenbrooke's Hospital and University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK - saniya.mediratta@gmail.com. 2. NIHR Global Health Research Group on Neurotrauma, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK - saniya.mediratta@gmail.com. 3. Department of Neurosurgery, Ospedali Riuniti, Livorno, Italy. 4. Division of Neurosurgery, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Addenbrooke's Hospital and University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK. 5. Department of Neurosurgery, Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, Little France, Edinburgh, UK. 6. Department of Neurosurgery, Mohamed V University Hospital, Rabat, Morocco. 7. Department of Neurosurgery, Hospital Universitario La Paz, Madrid, Spain. 8. CranioSPain Research Group, Instituto de Neurociencias y Ciencias del Movimiento (INCIMOV), Centro Superior de Estudios Universitarios La Salle, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain. 9. Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Trust, London, UK. 10. NIHR Global Health Research Group on Neurotrauma, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK. 11. Global Neurosurgery Initiative, Program in Global Surgery and Social Change, Department of Global Health and Social Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA. 12. Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, Sahlgrenska Academy, Gothenburg, Sweden. 13. George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Washington, DC, USA. 14. Neurosurgery Division, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland. 15. H umanitas Clinical and Research Center - IRCCS, Rozzano, Milano, Italy. 16. Department of Biomedical Sciences, Humanitas University, Pieve Emanuele, Milano, Italy. 17. Departamento de Neurocirugía, Hospital del Mar, Barcelona, España.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The expanding field of global neurosurgery calls for a committed neurosurgical community to advocate for universal access to timely, safe, and affordable neurosurgical care for everyone, everywhere. This study aims to (i) assess the current state of global neurosurgery activity amongst European neurosurgeons and (ii) identify barriers to involvement in global neurosurgery initiatives. METHODS: Cross-sectional study through dissemination of a web-based survey, from September 2019 to January 2020, to collect data from European neurosurgeons at various career stages. Descriptive analysis was conducted on respondent data. RESULTS: Three hundred and ten neurosurgeons from 40 European countries responded. 53.5% regularly follow global neurosurgery developments. 29.4% had travelled abroad with a global neurosurgery collaborative, with 23.2% planning a future trip. Respondents from high income European countries predominantly travelled to Africa (41.6%) or Asia (34.4%), whereas, respondents from middle income European countries frequently traversed Europe (63.2%) and North America (47.4). Cost implications (66.5%) were the most common barrier to global neurosurgery activity, followed by interference with current practice (45.8%), family duties (35.2%), difficulties obtaining humanitarian leave (27.7%) and lack of international partners (27.4%). 86.8% would incorporate a global neurosurgery period within training programmes. CONCLUSIONS: European neurosurgeons are interested in engaging in global neurosurgery partnerships, and several sustainable programmes focused on local capacity building, education and research have been established over the last decade. However, individual and system barriers to engagement persist. We provide insight into these to allow development of tailored mechanisms to overcome such barriers, enabling European neurosurgeons to advocate for the Global Surgery 2030 goals.
BACKGROUND: The expanding field of global neurosurgery calls for a committed neurosurgical community to advocate for universal access to timely, safe, and affordable neurosurgical care for everyone, everywhere. This study aims to (i) assess the current state of global neurosurgery activity amongst European neurosurgeons and (ii) identify barriers to involvement in global neurosurgery initiatives. METHODS: Cross-sectional study through dissemination of a web-based survey, from September 2019 to January 2020, to collect data from European neurosurgeons at various career stages. Descriptive analysis was conducted on respondent data. RESULTS: Three hundred and ten neurosurgeons from 40 European countries responded. 53.5% regularly follow global neurosurgery developments. 29.4% had travelled abroad with a global neurosurgery collaborative, with 23.2% planning a future trip. Respondents from high income European countries predominantly travelled to Africa (41.6%) or Asia (34.4%), whereas, respondents from middle income European countries frequently traversed Europe (63.2%) and North America (47.4). Cost implications (66.5%) were the most common barrier to global neurosurgery activity, followed by interference with current practice (45.8%), family duties (35.2%), difficulties obtaining humanitarian leave (27.7%) and lack of international partners (27.4%). 86.8% would incorporate a global neurosurgery period within training programmes. CONCLUSIONS: European neurosurgeons are interested in engaging in global neurosurgery partnerships, and several sustainable programmes focused on local capacity building, education and research have been established over the last decade. However, individual and system barriers to engagement persist. We provide insight into these to allow development of tailored mechanisms to overcome such barriers, enabling European neurosurgeons to advocate for the Global Surgery 2030 goals.
Authors: Laura Lippa; Toma Spiriev; Jiri Bartek; Diogo Belo; Evangelos Drosos; Cristina C Aldea; Netanel Ben-Shalom; Christian F Freyschlag; Stanislav Kaprovoy; Milan Lepic; Katrin Rabiei; Giovanni Raffa; Michael Schwake; Martin N Stienen; Cesare Zoia; Lukas Rasulic; Maria L Gandía-González Journal: Brain Spine Date: 2022-06-07