Inova Neurosciences - Academic Programs

The Neurosciences academic program consists of a coordinated schedule of conferences and lectures in the basic and clinical neurosciences, as well as a structured curriculum. The teaching conference schedule is structured to involve faculty participation and interaction. Regularly scheduled conferences include:

• Vascular conference
• Journal club
• Neurosciences school
• Neuroradiology case conference
• Neurosurgery peer review (M&M)
• Ortho-neuro spine conference
• NSICU teaching rounds
• Neurology peer review (M&M)
• Multi-disciplinary epilepsy case conference
• Neurodiagnostics Case Conference
• Cerebrovascular case conference

Each year, ten medical experts are invited to lecture at the Inova Alexandria Medical Campus. The lectures are planned specifically to address the interests of the physician groups served.

Several times a year, Inova Neurosciences sponsors multi-disciplinary, symposia, designed to provide medical and clinical participants education intended to improve patient care by enhancing the skills of health care professionals in an engaging, thought provoking environment.

Inova Neurosciences faculty members are invited several times a year to assist the physician audience with improving knowledge and building on the core values of the Hippocratic Oath.

The international fellowship provides an individual with a comprehensive, supervised full-time educational experience in the care of neurosurgical cases, including the comprehensive management of patients with life threatening neurological illnesses, the performance of surgical procedures, and the clinical management of patients.

The international observership program provides neurosurgeons the opportunity to interact with Inova’s experts and participate in clinical and educational activities, including various conferences, medical grand rounds, and seminars.

Each year, Inova Neurosciences facilitates an Advisory Board Conference and an Annual Business Meeting to provide leadership and maintain institutional alignment.

In 2004, Inova Fairfax Hospital expanded its educational offerings through a partnership with Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, developing the first regional branch medical campus in Northern Virginia. 31 third-year and 31 fourth-year medical students attend the branch school on the Inova Fairfax Hospital's campus. Inova Neurosciences runs the requisite four-week neurology clerkship in which the 31 third-year medical students enhance their skills in evaluating, diagnosing, and treating neurological patients.

In their fourth year of medical school, medical students are permitted to participate in a four-week clerkship rotation in either neurology or neurological surgery. The clerkships are conducted by neuroscience faculty and are an opportunity for the students to explore the possibility of choosing neurology or neurological surgery as their chosen specialty as well as an opportunity to further hone their skills in the evaluation and treatment of neurological disorders. The four-week neurological surgery rotation is also available to fourth-year medical students from other medical schools as an away rotation. Inova Neurosciences hosted three fourth-year visiting medical students for neurological surgery four-week rotations in 2018.

Each year, Inova Neurosciences facilitates a comprehensive radiologic and pathologic review of the brain, head and neck, and spine for those who are preparing for certification.

Each year, medical experts from Inova Neurosciences' nine primary programs extend dinner lectures to faculty and community physicians providing instruction on new guidelines or illustration on new procedures or technology.

Complementing the healthy partnership between teaching and scholarly publishing, Inova Neurosciences encourages inquiry and research for sustaining an academic career. Opportunities are available to prepare and publish articles, book chapters, and other manuscripts.

Inova Neurosciences has developed custom, medical educational programs targeted to meet a specific need or audience. Examples of programs include medical education tailored for athletic trainers, physical therapists, law enforcement, and emergency management personnel.

Each year, ten eminent, clinical neuroscientists are invited to Inova to participate as faculty during academic conferences, concluding the day with an invitation-only reception and dinner honoring the guest, highlighted by a final short lecture or casual talk and discussion.