NNI and UW-Madison Lead Course at Bolivian Neurosurgical Society 50th Anniversary Congress
Our Neurosurgery and Neurology Institute (NNI) team heads to La Paz, Bolivia this week to co-lead the second hands-on course focused on pediatric surgery, as part of our Neurosurgical Resident Education Program with the University of Wisconsin-Madison. This is a particularly significant trip, as the course and the surgeons involved will be honored and included in the Bolivian Neurosurgical Society 50th Anniversary Congress, held at the same time.
The purpose of this experiential course is to introduce Bolivian and Paraguayan residents and new doctors, enrolled in the UW-Madison Resident Education program, to basic and complex pediatric neurosurgery subspecialties, including ventricular endoscopy, intracranial pressure (ICP) and hydrodynamic principles, ICP measuring techniques, and ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt management through a mixture of lectures, hands-on stations, and case discussions. This two-day course will be hosted by the Hospital Materno Infantil, Caja Nacional de Salud, in La Paz, Bolivia.
This course is part of our Neurosurgery Resident Education program, a collaboration with the University of Wisconsin -Madison (UW-Madison) that began in 2019. The program’s goal is to increase access to efficient and safe minimally invasive surgery for Bolivians through the training of residents and new surgeons in neurosurgery subspecialties, including Pediatric, Spine, Tumor, Vascular, Peripheral nerve, Neuro-Endoscopy, Endovascular Therapy, and minimally invasive techniques. Bolivian participants take part in bi-monthly webinar courses led by UW-Madison Neurosurgeons and several in-person hands-on sessions in Bolivia, organized by Solidarity Bridge.
This course is also recognized as an official event of the 50th Bolivian Neurosurgical Society National Congress. This is a very special year for the Bolivian Neurosurgical Society as they celebrate 50 years since their founding. Solidarity Bridge is honored to contribute to this celebration as an important institution within the 50-year history of neurosurgical development in Bolivia.
The visiting NNI team is composed of NNI President, Dr. Richard Moser, UW-Wisconsin Madison neurosurgeons Dr. Robert Dempsey, Dr. Bermans Iskandar, and Dr. Joyce Koueik. The team will also include University of Minnesota neurosurgeon, Dr. Carolina Sandoval Garcia and University of Miami, neurosurgeon Dr. Victor Lu. Solidarity Bridge staff Maria Eugenia Brockmann and Lindsay Doucette will accompany the team.
The NNI team looks forward to joining their Bolivian colleagues as well as neurosurgeons from around the world in both the resident course and in the Bolivian Neurosurgical Society 50th Anniversary Congress. These events are integral in strengthening partnerships for the continued development of neurosurgical subspecialties in Bolivia. Stay tuned during the week for more updates!
*Photos pictured above feature residents during spinal surgery course held in March 2024.
