We are committed to fostering a culture of collaboration and empowering the next generation of neurosurgeons with the skills and knowledge to excel in diverse global healthcare landscapes. By facilitating meaningful partnerships, interdisciplinary research initiatives and cross-cultural dialogue, we seek to amplify the collective impact of the global neurosurgical community. We also aim to shape compassionate, skilled neurosurgeons who can navigate and address the complexities of neurosurgical care on a global scale.
Visiting Professor
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. See the 2023 visiting professor.
Global Surgery Journal Club
Journal Club is an initiative held jointly by the UAB Departments of Neurosurgery and Surgery. This monthly meeting was established as a space for sharing various experiences in global surgery among surgeons, students, residents, other members of the UAB team, and visitors from partner hospitals around the world. Journal Club also facilitates opportunities to collaborate and share knowledge with experts across global surgery.
-
Past Global Surgery Journal Club Meetings
- 1/17/2023: "The Lancet Commission on Global Surgery"
- 03/15/2023: "Pediatric surgery in Sub-Saharan Africa" - Dr. Britney Grayson, pediatric surgeon
- 5/8/2023: "Plastic Surgery in Resource Limited Settings" - Dr. John Grant, UAB Plastic Surgery; Dr. Solomon Obiri Yeboah, Maxillofacial Surgery, Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Kumasi, Ghana
- 8/15/2023: "Epilepsy Surgery in the South-East Asian Region“ - Dr. Sage Rahm, UAB Department of Neurosurgery resident; participation by our partners from Vietnam
- 10/12/2024: “Surgical Systems in Egypt'' - Dr. Mohammad Murcy, UAB Division of Breast & Endocrine Surgery research fellow; Dr. Mohammed Sayed, UAB Division of Pediatric Neurosurgery research fellow
- 01/17/2024: "Surgical Care in Rural India" - Dr. Phillip Alexander, Lady Willingdon Hospital medical superintendent
- 03/19/2024: "Common pathologies encountered in South Africa" - Dr. Nathan English, UAB research resident
- 06/6/2024: "Telemedicine in Surgical Care in Low- and Middle-Income Countries" - Dr. Madhushree Zope, UAB general surgery research resident
UAB Global Health Symposium
The UAB Mary Heersink Institute for Global Health hosted the inaugural UAB Global Health Symposium in September 2023 to bring together healthcare advocates from across the globe. Members from the Global Neurosurgery Program had the opportunity to lead a panel focused on engaging with collaborators, discussing potential ways to bridge the gap in neurosurgical, surgical and oncological training and capacity. View the 2023 Global Health Symposium recap.
SP2024 GHM 680-QL Special Topic: Global Surgery
Global Neurosurgery Program Director James Johnston, M.D., and Program Manager Martina Gonzalez Gomez, M.D., MSc, established a global surgery course available to UAB School of Public Health Master of Science in Global Health students. This course, GHM 680 Special Topics in GHM - Global Surgery, will equip students with an understanding of the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration, funding mechanisms, policy advocacy and equity in advancing surgical care worldwide. While students are enrolled in the course, they will experience lectures from global surgery elective course instructors in the UAB Heersink School of Medicine and the UAB School of Public Health Master of Science in Global Health (MSGH) program.
To participate as a lecturer in the course, please contact Martina Gonzalez Gomez at mgonzalezgomez@uabmc.edu.
Projects and Publications
Our projects and publications are driven by a commitment to making a tangible impact on patient care, healthcare systems, and the broader field of neurosurgery. We aspire to translate research findings into real-world solutions that improve outcomes and enhance the quality of neurosurgical care worldwide. Through our projects and publications, which have been a collaborative effort with our partners, we aim to share insights, findings and best practices with the global neurosurgical community to foster learning, collaboration and continuous improvement in the field. We are currently working on projects focused on program development and increasing neurosurgical capacity in our partner sites and beyond.
Modular Toolkit
Members of the UAB Global Neurosurgery Program are working to develop a standardized, modular and scalable neurosurgery collaboration toolkit based on institutional and partnership experiences and data-backed best practices. The toolkit consists of downloadable materials and digital resources that can be distributed worldwide to facilitate effective, ethical and equitable neurosurgical collaborations.
Publications
-
Recent Publications
- Haji, F. A., Lepard, J. R., Davis, M. C., Lien, N. D., Can, D. D. T., Hung, C. V., Thang, L. N., Rocque, B. G., & Johnston, J. M. (2021). A model for global surgical training and capacity development: the Children's of Alabama-Viet Nam pediatric neurosurgery partnership. Child's nervous system : ChNS : official journal of the International Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery, 37(2), 627–636. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00381-020-04802-4
- Duc Lien, N., Tuan, D. A., Vu Hung, C., Lepard, J. R., & Rocque, B. G. (2020). Corpus callosotomy for treatment of drug-resistant epilepsy: a review of 16 pediatric cases in northern Vietnam. Journal of neurosurgery. Pediatrics, 1–6. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.3171/2019.12.PEDS19638
- Davis, M. C., Can, D. D., Pindrik, J., Rocque, B. G., & Johnston, J. M. (2016). Virtual Interactive Presence in Global Surgical Education: International Collaboration Through Augmented Reality. World neurosurgery, 86, 103–111. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wneu.2015.08.053
- Can, Dang Do Thanh, et al. "The utility and post-operative evolution of head circumference in nonsyndromic single-suture craniosynostosis: a prospective study in Vietnamese children." Child's Nervous System 39.2 (2023): 471-479.
- Rocque BG, Davis MC, McClugage SG, Tuan DA, King DT, Huong NT, Thi Bich Van N, Kankirawatana P, Vu Hung C, Nam Thang L, Johnston JM, Duc Lien N. Surgical treatment of epilepsy in Vietnam: program development and international collaboration. Neurosurg Focus. 2018 Oct;45(4):E3. doi: 10.3171/2018.7.FOCUS18254. PMID: 30269583.