Scandinavian Course in Neurosurgery

March 13, 2025

Dear all, 

You can now find information about the program and our planned social activities under "Upcoming Course". 

Oslo, March 9th, 2025

Dear Friends! 

We are delighted to welcome you to Beitostølen and the 29th Annual Scandinavian Course in Neurosurgery – with the topic: Neurotraumatology and Neurointensive Care.

This year's topic covers a range of specialized themes and some of the most complex treatment algorithms in Neurosurgery. The interaction with other specialties of medicine combined with seriously ill patients makes the field challenging to explore. Often local adaptations allow for considerable variation in local practices. Again, we are grateful that an impressive set of lecturers, all experts in their specific subfields, have agreed to join us for a week of fantastic clinical, scientific, and social discussions. As in previous years, we have allocated much time to case-based group discussions, with a very low student-to-teacher ratio.

We are honored to welcome Professor Marios Papadopulos from St. Georgs's University Hospitals, a world-renowned expert in the field of spinal cord injury, as the Viking Lecturer. He is the exemplary recipient of this year's award, as his work covers both translational and clinical neurosurgery, adapting a range of approaches to improve our understanding and treatment of spinal cord injuries.

Also, we are grateful to have Kee Park, Head of the Program in Global Surgery and Social Change, Harvard Medical School, as a specially invited Honorary Lecturer. He is central to the development of Global Neurosurgery Training throughout several programs in Ethiopia, Cambodia and North Korea. He also serves on the WHO Expert Advisory Panel on Surgical Care and Social Change.

We hope the participation and interaction of these two leading figures with our residents will highlight and demonstrate the potential for excellence in both neurosurgery and society, and that they can serve as a role model for all participants of the course.

Like previous courses, we will award prizes for the best exam results in both the general course curriculum and the neuroanatomy exam. Students doing research may also present a short abstract on Thursday, competing for both fame and a monetary prize.

Evaluations and examinations will be collected and evaluated using the Socrative app. We encourage all participants to download and familiarize themselves with this software before coming to Beitostølen.

You can find the course curriculum on our website: https://www.beitocourse.com/upcoming-course/ 

We are delighted to welcome you all to Beitostølen for great lectures, engaging discussions and friendly interactions.

On behalf of the organizing committee,

Pål and Einar  

The Annual Scandinavian Course in Neurosurgery was founded in 1997 by Professor Iver Langmoen. One week per year, usually week 12, Scandinavian neurosurgical residents convene at the amazingly beautiful ski resort Beitostølen to learn the basics of neurosurgery, meet experienced colleagues, establish networks, go skiing (both downhill and cross-country) and enjoy the welcoming atmosphere at Radisson Blu Mountain Resort. 

The aims of the course are to enhance the theoretical education of Scandinavian residents and to facilitate interaction among aspiring and established neurosurgeons. Since neurosurgery is such a small area within medicine, it is important to build a solid network for the younger neurosurgeons to be able to fall back on when needed.

The course philosophy emphasizes the value of case discussion in small groups (usually 7-8 people per group with one or two lecturers), in addition to short plenary review sessions. The lecturers are carefully selected among the best neurosurgeons in the Scandinavian countries.

This course covers all topics mandatory for neurosurgical board certification in the Nordic countries.