Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery Fellowship

Fellowship Director
John C. Liu, MD
Northwestern Neurological Surgery
676 N. St Clair St., Suite 2210
Chicago, IL 60611
Email:  jliu@nmff.org
Fax:  312-695-0225

Overview
Minimally invasive spine surgery is a discipline within the specialty of neurological surgery that is concerned with the treatment of back and neck disease using minimally invasive approaches, which offer the benefits of traditional spine surgery with less surgical access morbidity.

Details
The minimally invasive spine surgery training program at Northwestern University’s McGaw Medical Center is recognized by the ACGME.  It is a one year program based at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.  Fellows may participate in surgical cases at Children’s Memorial Hospital and Evanston Hospital on occasion under the supervision of the fellowship faculty.

This fellowship program will provide a broad educational experience in:

• Spinal anatomy and indications for surgery
• Assessment and correction of spinal deformity
• Minimally invasive spinal techniques

This fellowship complements basic spinal skills learned in residency.  The fellowship will prepare the fellow to function as an independent subspecialist with proficiency in assessing the need for surgery, determining the appropriate treatment, and managing patients post-operatively.  Clinical research and preparation of manuscripts for publication is required.  The fellow will also be responsible for preparation of lectures and coordinating the Thursday morning spine conference.     

The program faculty includes 7 neurological surgeons.  Each faculty member demonstrates a strong interest in the education of fellows, possesses sound clinical and teaching abilities, supports the goals and objectives of the program, and participates in scholarly activities.

Structure
The Northwestern minimally invasive spine surgery fellowship is designed as follows:

Nine months clinical/Three months research
Fellows will have two 3-month rotations in minimally invasive spine surgery, a 3-month rotation in complex and reconstructive spine deformity, and 3 months of research.

Research
The fellowship program provides opportunities for basic science, translational, and clinical research related to the care of patients with spine disease requiring surgery.  The fellow will work with designated staff on specific projects or initiate new studies based on the fellow’s research interests.  The scholarly activity  requirement is 3 peer-reviewed articles per year.

Weekly Conferences
In addition to daily rounds with the attending faculty, a detailed didactic program exists for the educational advantage of the minimally invasive spine surgery fellow.  Current didactic conferences relative to the fellowship include: 

Faculty
For a complete list of the faculty for the minimally invasive spine surgery fellowship and their specialties, click here.

Admission Prerequisites
Applicants for the minimally invasive spine surgery fellowship must have completed an ACGME-accredited residency in neurological surgery or equivalent training.  Under certain circumstances, a candidate for this fellowship might be at the PGY5 or PGY6 level.  These “internal fellows” will be utilizing elective or research rotations during their core residency to achieve subspecialty training in minimally invasive techniques.  The Director of the Fellowship is responsible for ascertaining that each applicant has completed the appropriate prerequisite training.

Application Requirements
Applications for the fellowship will be accepted through December 1^st for the upcoming fellowship year.  Offers for personal interviews will be made upon completion of the application. 

If you are interested in applying for this fellowship program, please send a:

• Completed application,
• Curriculum vitae, and
• Three letters of recommendation, one of which must be from a spine surgeon, addressed to:

John C. Liu, MD
Director, Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery Fellowship
Northwestern Department of Neurological Surgery
676 N St. Clair, Suite 2210
Chicago, IL 60611

For More Information
If you need further information or assistance, contact Lisa Glatz by phone: 312-695-6283, fax: 312-695-0225, or email: lglatz@nmff.org.

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