From virtual lectures to hands-on practice, our two day Spinal Surgery Workshop gave more than 25 neurosurgical residents from Bolivia and Paraguay an opportunity to advance their skills.
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A decade ago, there was very little access to endoscopic pituitary surgery in Bolivia, regardless of a patient’s economic status. Today, access to these procedures has grown and expanded across the country.
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Patients suffering strokes and aneurysms in Paraguay may wait months or years for treatment due to a lack of essential but highly specialized endovascular supplies. A generous donation by Stryker delivered during our June mission trip to Asunción is helping make neuro-endovascular care accessible for many such patients.
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Each day of the Neurology and Neurosurgery Institute mission trip on epilepsy care brings new reminders of the complexity of neurological disorders. Working in collaboration among a team of specialists improves chances for accurate diagnoses and successful treatments.
This week in Bolivia, we are celebrating a major achievement: the first-ever epilepsy surgery performed in the public children’s hospital of Santa Cruz!
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Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological diseases, but three-quarters of people living with epilepsy in low-income countries do not get the treatment they need. Our Neurosurgery and Neurology Institute (NNI) is partnering with colleagues at the public Children’s Hospital in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, to bridge this gap.
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Over 60 residents, students, and early-career doctors in Bolivia and Paraguay are participating in a UW-Madison virtual neurosurgery residency program facilitated by the NNI.
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Anyone who has witnessed the devastating impact of a traumatic brain injury knows that an integrated approach is needed to care for patients and support their reintegration into society. On a November NNI trip to Hospital Santa Bárbara in Sucre, Bolivia, we expanded our focus to the entire spectrum of care for TBIs.
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In Bolivia’s public hospitals, head trauma from traffic accidents, falls, or violence represents a pressing healthcare burden. Head and spine injuries not only affect the long-term quality of life of the injured patient but of entire families and communities.
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Many trainees in developing countries don’t have access to a practice space for advanced techniques. This drives motivated doctors to move abroad for their educational advancement and contributes to a drain on the medical workforce in low-income countries.
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The three patients treated during our trip had experienced sudden and severe headaches and nausea, caused by a high-grade AVM. The complexity of their cases pushed the limits of surgical treatment available in Paraguay. But the doctors at the Hospital Nacional de Itaguá were motivated and eager to advance their skills in this type of care.
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Today is our third day at the Hospital Nacional de Itauguá, our second day of surgery. As we gathered in the faculty lounge, the surgeons seemed somewhat anxious. Yesterday’s surgery was successful, but today’s case will be much more difficult.
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On our fourth medical mission trip to the Hospital Nacional de Itauguá in Asunción, Paraguay our Neurosurgery & Neurology insitute team will work with their counterparts to advance AVM surgeries.
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Pediatric neurologists Dr. Victor Cuéllar and Dr. Shirley Martinez juggled patient care needs at the Children’s Hospital in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, with the imperative to use data from their extensive practice to study the incidence and risk factors for epilepsy in Bolivia. They recently partnered with the Solidarity Bridge Neurosurgery & Neurology Institute (NNI) for support.
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How do we measure our work? We can count surgeries performed and medical supplies delivered, but what about our equally important work fostering relationships? The XXI Bolivian Congress of Neurosurgery in Santa Cruz reminded us of the power of relationships to improve access to safe and timely medical care.
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