The organising committee of the Spinal TIG, invites centres not already registered to apply for the opportunity to host a spinal TIG fellow. This programme is an exciting curriculum-based training fellowship, combining neurosurgical and orthopaedic spinal surgical training for pre CCT fellows. Fellows are appointed by a competitive application and interview process centrally and once selected choose which centre to go to from the list of suitable centres. At the moment we have 10 centres in the programme: Leeds, Salford/Manchester, Liverpool, Bristol, Sheffield, Birmingham, Oxford, Cardiff, Preston, Stoke on Trent.

This year we have three STIG fellows – Alex Goubran, Alexander Durst and Sheweidin Aziz undertaking fellowships in Cardiff, Sheffield and Birmingham.

For 2021-22, we have funding in England for up-to three fellows, commencing in the summer of 2021 running for a one- year period. Under GMC regulations, the fellowships are pre CCT at this time, but will change to post CCT in due course. All fellowships are administered by the Severn Deanery and under the auspices of the JCST. We do not have funding at this time for centres outside England, and any centres applying from the rest of the UK and Ireland will be required to provide their own funding for fellows.

Applications require the completion of a Hospital Application Form (HAF) which sets out to establish the joint approach of training in the centre and the support of the local post graduate dean for the fellowship.

For application forms, or any queries, please contact Mr Niall Eames (Chair of the Spinal TIG Committee) via interface@jcst.org

Thank you for supporting this exciting combined training between neurosurgery and orthopaedic surgery in the exacting discipline of spinal surgery.

The Spinal TIG Committee - October 2021

Preliminary announcement

From - The Spinal Training Interface Group (STIG) Committee

We are delighted to announce that at least two STIG fellowships will soon be advertised to commence in summer 2021. These will be for PRE CCT trainees from both neurosurgery and orthopaedic surgery. Please note that the programme is changing to a post CCT fellowship in due course, but this round of appointments will be for PRE CCT trainees in 2021.

The STIG fellowship is designed to allow combined curriculum-based training between neurosurgery and orthopaedic surgery in the discipline of spinal surgery. Trainees will be appointed by competitive interview and will then select where they wish to undertake their fellowship from the list of suitable centres, all of which are leading spinal centres in the UK and Ireland, based around the spinal curriculum. The specialised training centres are listed on the JCST web site. These training placements provide joint training between Neurosurgery and Orthopaedic spinal surgery in established spinal centres. The fellowships will be undertaken as a period of Out of Programme Experience OOP(E).

This is the second year of these spinal TIG fellowships. Currently three STIGs are in post. We are delighted to be able to build on the success of this program and we will be advertising in the near future with interviews anticipated early in 2021 and posts commencing in summer 2021.

Further information is available in the JCST website or email myself at NiallEames@belfasttrust.hscni.net

Niall Eames

Chair Spinal TIG Committee

JCST

The British Association of Spine Surgeons (BASS) and the British Scoliosis Society (BSS) recorded six webinars for the British Orthopaedic Association 2020 Virtual Congress revalidation sessions. 

To view each of the videos, click the links below:

• Back Pain in Child and Young Adult
• Cauda Equina Syndrome (CES)
• MSCC
• Spinal Infections
• Spinal Trauma
• Spondyloarthritis

Mr. Kyle Martin McDonald FRCS

Consultant Spinal Surgeon, Belfast

Died Suddenly 26^th July 2020

It is with great sadness that we announce the sudden death of our esteemed colleague and friend Kyle McDonald.

Kyle was an exceptional Spinal surgeon who will be missed by patients and colleagues alike.

He was a loving husband to Poppy and devoted father of Darcey and Rory.

Kyle graduated from Queen’s University medical school and completed his orthopaedic training in Northern Ireland whilst gaining the Sir Walter Mercer Medal for the highest marks in the exit exam.  Upon completion of his training he embarked upon a fellowship in Scoliosis surgery in Dublin before returning as a Consultant in 2017.

This level of achievement summed up Kyle perfectly.  He was a supremely gifted and talented surgeon who made the hard things look easy. 

Patients and staff due to his carefree nature and quick wit loved Kyle.  His sense of humour was unrivalled.  He was a kind person who devoted his time to caring for his Scoliosis patients.  Nothing was too much trouble for him.

Above all Kyle cherished his beautiful family.  He valued the time he spent with his fantastic wife and darling children.

At this time we offer our deepest sympathies and love to Poppy, Darcey, Rory and the wider McDonald family.

Our team will never forget what Kyle brought to us.  We are weaker as a result. 

The UK spinal community has lost a young and talented surgeon, who had given so much and who could have given so much more.

Sadly Kyle was taken from us too soon but his legacy will be with us forever.  Rest in peace.

Obituary by Sam Sloan - Consultant Spinal Surgeon, Belfast Health and Social Care Trust

Following the webinar broadcast on 30th June 2020, we have now made the recording available  - to view the webinar, click here

The British Association of Spine Surgeons (BASS) are proud to present the first of many trainee-focused events with a session focused towards a career in spinal surgery.

Topic: So you want to be a Spinal Surgeon?

When: Tuesday 30th June 2020 - 8pm

Where: Zoom Online Webinar

Registration: Free of charge

To register, visit: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_FxlGoCoVQHeWHYqE9z-WlA

This session will cover:

- Current training pathways in the UK, with an update on the Advanced 'In-Training' Fellowship in Spinal Surgery (a.k.a. STiG = Spinal Training Interface Group)

- What makes a good fellowship?

- Examples of post-CCT fellowship training in the UK and abroad with a discussion about what each route offers.

- There will also be ample opportunity to ask the panel questions via the Q&A tab.

The panel includes:

Host: Zacharia Silk (BASS Trainee Rep)

Speakers:

- Niall Eames (Consultant, Belfast)

- Hui-Ling Kerr (Consultant,

- Fahid Rasul (Fellow, Royal London Hospital)

- Zacharia Silk (Fellow, Great Ormond Street Hospital)

Moderators: Sashin Ahuja (BASS President) / Rajat Verma (BSS Education)

The event is free to attend and open to non-members too. Please share with your colleagues and trainees.

For those unable to attend, or wish to review the content again at a later stage, the webinar will be recorded and posted onto the BASS website, within the members section.

Details of how to become a BASS member can be found here: https://spinesurgeons.ac.uk/Member-Benefits

FAQs:

1. Is there a limit to the number of registrants?

There is no limit on registration, however our webinar platform the limit of attendees at any one time is 500, so when this reaches capacity during the webinar, no other users can enter. It is highly unlikely that we will hit this limit, but we do need to make attendees aware.

2. Will the event/webinar be recorded?

Yes - we plan to make the recording available to BASS members after the event. Previous Webinar recordings can be found on the members-only section of the BASS website.

3. Will the session interactive?

Yes - you are welcome to ask questions to the panel via the ‘Q&A’ function at the bottom of your screen. The panelists will do their best to answer your questions live, or write back to you.

4. Will I get a certificate?

Yes - following a completed feedback form which will be provided to attendees at the end of the event. Certificates will be sent the following week.

5. Can non-members attend?

Yes - this event is *freely available to surgeons (junior and senior), so please share amongst your colleagues and trainees.

* BASS reserve the right to email/contact non-members to suggest becoming BASS members in the future. Future webinars may be limited to members only.

This is the ninth webinar in our series of online educational events focused on delivering high quality spinal education to you at home.

Building on recent paediatric deformity sessions, this session will focus on the assessment and treatment Scheuermann's Kyphosis and Paediatric Spondylolisthesis.

Whilst aimed at post-CCT fellows, consultants, registrars and doctors from other grades are welcome to join. The event is free to attend and open to non-members too. Please share with your colleagues and trainees.

Topic: Paediatric Spondylolisthesis and Kyphosis
When: Tuesday 23rd June 2020 - 8pm
Where: Zoom Online Webinar
Registration: Free of charge

Host: Mr Zacharia Silk (BASS Trainee Rep)

Speakers:
- Mr Jonathan Lucas (London)
- Mr Ashley Cole (Sheffield)
- Mr Sashin Ahuja (Cardiff)

Moderators: Mr Rajat Verma (BSS Education), Mr Rohit Shetty (BASS Education)

To register, visit: 
https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Pg_nSLZOR-e0xi-Y_Ny4-Q

For those unable to attend, or wish to review the content again at a later stage, the webinar will be recorded and posted onto the BASS website, within the members section.

FAQs:

1. Is there a limit to the number of registrants?
There is no limit on registration, however our webinar platform the limit of attendees at any one time is 500. It is highly unlikely that we will hit this limit, but we do need to make attendees aware.

2. Will the event/webinar be recorded?
Yes - we plan to make the recording available to BASS members after the event. Previous Webinar recordings can be found on the members-only section of the BASS website.

3. Will the session interactive?
Yes - you are welcome to ask questions to the panel via the ‘Q&A’ function at the bottom of your screen. The panelists will do their best to answer your questions live, or write back to you.

4. Will I get a certificate?
Yes - following a completed feedback form which will be provided to attendees at the end of the event. Certificates will be sent the following week.

5. Can non-members attend?
Yes - this event is *freely available to surgeons (junior and senior), so please share amongst your colleagues and trainees. 

* BASS reserve the right to email/contact non-members to suggest becoming BASS members in the future. Future webinars may be limited to members only.

 if you have any other suggested topics you wish for BASS to run a webinar on.

Hosts and Moderators:
Rajat Verma (BSS Education), Rohit Shetty (BASS Education) and Sashin Ahuja (BASS President)

This is the seventh webinar in our series of online educational events focused on delivering high quality spinal education to you at home!

The programme now shifts to the assessment and management of paediatric spinal deformity and has been put together in conjunction with our colleagues in the British Scoliosis Society (BSS).

This session will focus on Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis and we will be joined by an exceptional panel of speakers from the UK.

Topic: Assessment & Treatment of Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (AIS)
When: Tuesday 9th June 2020 - 8pm
Where: Zoom Online Webinar
Registration: Free of charge.

To register, visit: 
https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_RkcS5esORtmuvSt45PoQ2A

Co-Hosts: Mr Rajat Verma (BSS Education Lead) & Mr Zacharia Silk (BASS Trainee Rep)

Speakers:
- Mr Mike Grevitt (Nottingham)
- Mr Vinay Jasani (Stoke on Trent)
- Mr Jason Bernard (St George's, London)

Moderator: Mr Sashin Ahuja (BASS President)

Whilst aimed at post-CCT fellows, consultants, registrars and doctors from other grades are welcome to join. A certificate of attendance will be provided on receipt of a completed feedback form.

The event is free to attend and open to non-members too. Please share with your colleagues and trainees.

For those unable to attend, or wish to review the content again at a later stage, the webinar will be recorded and posted onto the BASS website, within the members section (you will need to be a BASS Member - more details here)

We very much hope you can join us for this session. If you have any suggestions about future topics you’d like us to cover, please email: webinars@spinesurgeons.ac.uk.