I hope all is well with you, and that you’re enjoying the summer break.
I thought it important to share with you a Summer Update regarding recent developments relating to the BSNR.
1. The Educational Programme has just completed its first year, and has covered modules in Trauma, Neuro-Oncology, Inflammatory White Matter Disorders, and Neuro-Infection. This has been organised by Ian Craven and colleagues on the Training and Education subcommittee (TESC), and is being taken forward in Year 2 by Lalani Carlton-Jones and Tom Campion. The programme involves and depends on the support and teaching of many of our Neuroradiologists around the country, and continues to be extremely well received. Nearly 30 sessions have been delivered, with an average of 174 attendees per session. The videos of the lectures have also been watched more than 7,000 times. Year 2 modules will include Spinal Neuroradiology, Paediatric Neuroradiology, Head and Neck Imaging, and Neurodegenerative Disorders. Thanks go to all on the TESC, especially to Lalani for co-ordinating the speakers and to Tom for managing feedback and the video presentations on the website. Thank you to all who have supported the programme by their teaching.
2. The Grand Round Series has flourished, and is growing as a forum for teaching and sharing between centres. Recent presentations have been provided from within the UK by Imperial, Liverpool, GOSH, Brighton, Guy’s & St Thomas’, Newcastle, Birmingham, Kings, and Royal Free. The Series also provides a great opportunity for connecting with our international sister societies, and we have been fortunate to receive tremendous presentations from Toronto and Kuwait recently, with future presentations due from Brazil, Singapore and South Africa, with additional input anticipated from the Netherlands, Australia and Hong Kong later in the year and into early 2022. Priya Bhatnagar has been instrumental in co-ordinating the Series and has put in a huge amount of work communicating and connecting within the UK and internationally.
3. Shubh Biswas from Liverpool has been instrumental on behalf of the BSNR in the planning, co-ordination and delivery of a highly successful Global Webinar Series, in conjunction with the Royal College. This has consisted of a series of six lectures, with a mix of high profile international and UK speakers, to a global audience. The Series has been very well attended, with hundreds of attendees from around the world logging into the webinars. This has helped to further promote the role of the BSNR internationally, and has helped to strengthen our ties with the College. Many thanks to Shubh for the huge amount of work and dedication that he put into this on our behalf.
4. Plans are in place for the Training and Education Committee to extend the educational programme even further, through the introduction of Virtual Reporting Sessions. Having trialled RadAcad software, Ian Craven and colleagues will be providing virtual reporting training sessions with higher Neuroradiology trainees, in collaboration with local training schemes. This is a tremendously exciting initiative, and has the potential to provide high quality, small group teaching from nationally renowned trainers.
5. The second of our Evening Lectures was delivered at Easter, by Paul Sankey, of Foot Anstey Solicitors. Paul gave a lecture on medico-legal issues facing our speciality, including problems relating to perceptual errors, and built on the Christmas Lecture from Professor Jeremy Wolfe, who also attended Paul’s lecture as a panellist. The lecture was highly engaging and informative, and had over 500 attendees.
6. The BSNR continues to build its international collaborations. We continue to develop close links with the Australian and New Zealand Society, and have been invited to contribute to an ‘international session’ at the upcoming ANZSNR Conference in early 2022, with a view to reciprocation at BSNR conferences in the future. This connection is also closely involving Singapore and Hong Kong, with whom we have developed good communications. As an illustration of how effectively such collaborations can work, a highly successful seminar was delivered by the BSNR to the Brazilian Society in May, with six very high quality lectures from neuroradiologists from around the UK. Kelly Pegoretti Baruteau from UCL was instrumental in this, not only as a presenter but also as a Brazilian and Portuguese speaker, she helped make the seminar seamless.
7. The BSNR has established a subgroup in Paediatric Imaging, the British Paediatric Neuroradiology Group. This has been established with a view to promoting education and standards in Paediatric Neuroradiology, including Neonatal and Fetal imaging. The Group is at an early stage of formation, and Kish Mankad is the initial interim Chair. It is hoped that the Group will provide an effective vessel for Paediatric Neuroimaging, and is important in building bridges between specialists, with non-tertiary centres, with the British Society of Paediatric Radiology, and internationally. Your help and support during this formative stage is essential to the success of this project.
8. The BSNR is setting up a forum for the discussion of issues relating to AI in Neuroradiology. An initial scoping exercise is underway with a view to establishing the BSNR as a stakeholder in the process, building on the expertise that exists within our ranks. A survey will be sent out to help us to frame the best scope and focus for our initial efforts. Links with NICE have already been put in place.
9. Collaborative discussions are underway with our friends and colleagues within our sister society, the UKNG, to forge a joint co-operative approach to issues relating to Interventional Neuroradiology and to its interface with Diagnostic Neuroradiology. This is an exciting development from an organisational perspective and will provide the basis for effective cross-working and resource sharing.
10. The planning for the BSNR Annual Scientific Meeting is at an advanced stage, with a view to a face-to-face meeting in London on Thursday 18th and Friday 19th November, to take place at the Royal College of Physicians. A training day will also take place on Wednesday 17th November. There is an exciting and busy programme scheduled, with top quality international and national speakers. Details will follow very shortly. Thanks go to Tarek Yousry and his team for their hard work and inspirational leadership.
As I hope you can see, there has been a considerable amount of progress made, all dependent on the hard work, support and engagement of a large number of individuals. The continued success and development of the programme depends on your continued support and involvement.
I would again wish to thank the BSNR executive and all on the BSNR subcommittees for their hard work, enthusiasm, and drive, working on your behalf.
Thank you all for your continued support in making the BSNR as exciting, inclusive and relevant a society as we can.
With all best wishes
Daniel Birchall
President, BSNR