In response to the changing demands of clinical and academic medical practice, the United Kingdom Department of Health has launched an initiative in its modernising medical careers programme of integrated academic training pathways within postgraduate medical education. This initiative is strongly supported by the SBNS.
The initiative involves the creation of an academic training pathway that parallels the current specialist registrar training programme. The academic program divides the eight year training period in neurosurgery into an initial three year period of an academic clinical fellowship which involves a 25% time commitment to academic work. This will then be followed by a period of training in academic clinical lectureships where there will be a 50% commitment to academic work.
More details are available from the modernising medical careers website