Training Resources
Simulation Training Camps
ST1
ST1 National Neurosurgery Simulation Training Camp
The course is supported and endorsed by the Neurosurgery SAC and the SBNS and provides hands-on experience in essential basic neurosurgical skills. There has been excellent feedback from previous groups regarding the educational, social, and team-building aspects of the course.
All newly appointed ST1 Trainees are strongly encouraged to attend.
Training Program Directors should support study leave applications and forward the details of eligible trainees to Mr Isaac Phang as early as possible.
Any Consultant keen to participate as faculty, for all or part of the training camp, can contact Mr Arup Ray
Course Organisers
Arup Ray & Isaac Phang
The next ST1 Stimulation Training Camp will be held at the Health Academy in Royal Preston Hospital - 18 - 21 August 2025
ST3
The ST3 course is endorsed by the Specialty Advisory Committee (SAC) in Neurosurgery & the Society of British Neurological Surgeons (SBNS), and is mapped to the ST3 Curriculum.
All ST3 trainees holding a National Training Number in the UK & Ireland are strongly encouraged to book their study leave as soon as possible and register for the course
The next ST3 Simulation Course takes place at the University Hospital Coventry & West Midlands Surgical Training Centre, UK.
It will be run by Mr Sandeep Solanki, Consultant Neurosurgeon and Course Director, JCST-SAC Simulation Lead for ST3.
Request for Faculty Members
Neurosurgery Consultants from around the UK & Ireland are welcome to attend and participate as Faculty Members. Any level of commitment from 1 day to all 5 days would be appreciated. It would be nice to have consultant representation from each of the neurosurgical units around the UK & Ireland.
If you are interested please contact Sandeep Solanki or Rachel Davies, Course Administrator
ST6
The first ST6 Simulation Training Course is due to take place in Coventry 8th -11th April 2025 and will focus on more advanced level cadaveric dissection.
Mark your diaries ….more details to follow.
ST7/8
The ST7/8 Stimulation Course, aka "Finishing School, runs every other year and the next one will be in 2025.
It is run by Ms. K. Whitehouse, SBNS Council Member and SBNS EDI Chair
Further announcements will be made in due course.
E-Learning
E-Brain
ebrain is a non-profit raising initiative brought to you by the Joint Neurosciences Council (JNC) and it is currently by led by Clinical Leads Mr. Nitin Mukerji, Mr. Dan Brown, and Dr. Louise Davidson.
SBNS members receive FREE access to the ebrain online learning programme - login details are issued when membership is confirmed.
If you are an existing SBNS Member and you have problems logging in, please contact [email protected]
What it offers
The programme supports training and continuous professional development for clinical neuroscience trainees and consultants. It is one of the world’s largest, most comprehensive web-based training resource in clinical neuroscience.
There are over 10,000 users, with almost 200 logging on each week accessing over 500 modules covering all aspects of Neuroscience.
E-Learning Sessions
Each e-learning session is a self-contained 20-minute piece of learning that starts with learning objectives and ends with a summary and questions. The users can get a certificate of completion, which can be added to the appraisal/ ARCP portfolio.
Virtual patients
A case history is presented. The learner directs the investigation and management of the patient. Patients can be managed and mismanaged quite safely. These virtual patient scenarios are very helpful for the FRCS exam.
Webinars
ebrain can host slides and the accompanying audio track from conference lectures, with knowledge check questions. A lot of the webinars that happened during the COVID pandemic are archived and accessible on the ebrain website.
Question banks
Question banks have 50 questions pulled at random from a selected part or all of the question bank to deliver an 'on demand' mock theory exam. The question bank is contributed to by the users and faculty and has over a 1000 questions.
Annual Formative tests and training courses
The annual formative in-training tests in Neurosurgery are now 'on demand,. These tests comprise 50 questions and the candidates are given their score immediately. ebrain also has guided courses for ST1-2, ST3-4 and above and these are in line with the ISCP curriculum.
Learning paths
Indices of selected content show users which sessions are recommended. The learning pathways reflect specialty curriculum areas.
Video Library
ebrain is currently working on compiling a surgical video library with narration to help trainees and consultants revise operative steps, watch this space.
To find out more and to log in please visit www.ebrain.net
Great Britain and Ireland Neurosurgery Teaching Programme (GAIN)
Great Britain and Ireland Neurosurgery Teaching Programme (GAIN)
GAIN was launched by Health Education England in September 2024 as part of a pan-surgical training agenda, wherein each surgical speciality will develop its own online training programme on a national scale to complement pre-existing local/regional teaching as well as standardise access to core teaching across all regions.
Andrew Edwards-Bailey, ST4 Trainee, is leading on the Neurosurgery element of this and he hopes it will be a useful addition to training which will complement the impressive work done by platforms such as eBrain and the Brainschool series. The programme is open to all neurosurgical trainees in the UK and Republic of Ireland (NTN trainees and non-NTN trainees alike including trust grade and locally employed doctors in neurosurgery). In the fullness of time, the aim is to have a library of resources, live sessions, operative videos, mock exams, MCQs etc., but in the short term they are starting with monthly webinars which will be broadcast live via teams, and then stored for people to watch later the Postgraduate Virtual Learning Environment (PGVLE).
The details of the webinar sessions are:
- 2 x 2 hour teaching sessions per month
- Will run at 5-7pm on the last Wednesday and Thursday of the month
- Multiple expert speakers per session
- Run via Teams and accessed via the PGVLE
- Recordings of the talks will be stored on the PGVLE to be re-watched at any time
- Certificates will be provided only for attendance at the live session.
- Will cover the national neurosurgery curriculum, aiming to be at a level of knowledge required for the FRCS exam.
- To attend the sessions and access the programme, you will need to be given access to the PGVLE. To register for this, you will need to complete the online survey by clicking on the link or scanning the QR Code below.
Complete Survey
Nicholas Carlton-Bland
NHS National Director of On line Training for Neurosurgery
Brain School
“Independent, informal, inspiring” – Brain School is an ongoing series of neurosurgery seminars, which has run independently of any other organisation for the last 16 years. It provides a fantastic opportunity to expand your knowledge, network with leading experts in the field, and collaborate with the neurosurgery community.
This year, we will pursue a hybrid format, with some face-to-face sessions and some online sessions, always on the last Wednesday of the month at 7pm (except July, August and December). This is conveniently directly after the GAIN sessions! Our home for the face-to-face sessions at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.
Brain School is primarily aimed at senior trainees, but attracts all those interested in neurosurgery, from medical student to consultant, from all over London and beyond. The educational events feature a stellar lineup of speakers from the UK and around the globe, bringing diverse insights from a wide variety of sub-specialties within neurosurgery and its allied specialties.
To find out more head to the BrainSchool website.
To receive a reminder about our upcoming events, please Subscribe to Mailing List.
Neurosurgical Courses
Neurosurgical Theory Courses
Liverpool Neurosurgical Masterclass Series
This event is held twice a year and hosted by the Walton Centre. The Liverpool Masterclass series is a 2.5 year rolling program covering high-yield topics of the FRCS exam and more with expert opinion from international and national speakers. The 5 areas covered: Skull base and Vascular, Neuro-Oncology, Spine, Trauma & Hydrocephalus and Functional Neurosurgery.
The European Association of Neurological Societies (EANS)
The EANS courses are run in 3 cycles across the year. When enrolled, each participant is assigned to a single cycle, and completes 4 years training covering the entire neurosurgery curriculum. It is hosted in a different European location each year. Places are allocated by competitive application.
Neuroanatomy
King’s College London runs a popular annual neuroanatomy course. It is divided into two parts: online and dissection
To find out more visit: https://www.neurocourses.com/
Cambridge Lectures in Neurosurgical Anatomy will soon run its 20th year. They have an outstanding collection of lectures covering neurosurgery anatomy and an impressive collection of key speakers. To find out more visit: https://clna.co.uk/
Hands-On Courses
Various courses are hosted by units across Europe as a series of hands-on courses under EANS. The cranial and spinal courses range from basic to advanced; highlights also include their microneurosurgery course and white matter dissection course
FRCS Revision Courses
contact John Wadley: [email protected]
The Aberdeen FRCS (Neurosurgery) Viva Course
Contact Peter Bodkin: [email protected]
The Charing Cross Revision course. It runs prior to part 2 exams biannually, and consists of a weekend of viva station practice with feedback.
Contact Kevin Tsang: [email protected]
Further information and tips on exams visit the BNTA website
Research Training Courses
A current clinical practice certificate is required to participate in clinical research.
This online course is available free from the NIHR. It is likely that this will need to be updated every 2 years.
Research methods days and courses are also run by a large number of institutions including SBNS and RCS England
Additional Courses
Other courses frequently undertaken by Neurosurgeons are:
Advanced Trauma Life Support, Care of the Critically Ill Surgical Patient, Basic Surgical Skills and Non-Technical Skills.
These can all be found and booked online at the Royal College of Surgeons England, or Royal College of Surgeons Edinburgh
Continued Professional Development (CPD)
Collecting and recording of CPD activity has formed part of the appraisal system, but is now an integral part of so-called "Strengthened Medical Appraisal". A reflective approach is encouraged. Each employer has an individual approach to the details, but evidence of satisfactory completion of annual appraisals, including CPD, is central to the GMC process of revalidation.
Appraisal
CPD activity will need to be documented as part of your appraisal. It is good practice to maintian a portfolio of certificates for CPD in anticipation of this.
Revalidation
An individual doctor is responsible for collecting his or her supporting information, although trusts must make some of the data available, in particular clinical outcome data. 360° assessments are also required and your trust should provide a facility for you to participate in this process.
Application for SBNS CPD Approval
The Society of British Neurological Surgeons will recognise courses and scientific meetings that meet the Academy of Royal Medical Colleges CPD Standards.
If you wish to apply for SBNS approval please download and complete the application form below:
Application for SBNS CPD Approval
When completing pleae refer to the guidance ‘Standards and Criteria for CPD Activities – A Framework for Accreditation’ and return to Suzanne Murray at the SBNS office [email protected] providing evidence to support your answers where applicable. Please apply 4-6 weeks prior to the event.
E-Logbook
The logbook supports appraisal, training and clinical governance. You can record operations, CPD activity and design your own audits.
All neurosurgical doctors, not just trainees are encouraged to register and to use the logbook. The logbook has been officially adopted as the neurosurgical logbook by the SBNS, JCST and the SAC in Neurosurgery.