Stanford Global Health Neurosurgery

CURRENT WORK: Dr. Gerald Grant has led Stanford’s global health neurosurgical work in Uganda at the Mulago National Referral Hospital (MNRH) since 2013. Over the past 40 years, Uganda has seen significant changes in the capacity and efficacy of neurosurgical care. This progress has been led largely by the only tertiary neurosurgical hospital, MNRH. Dr. Grant’s team, in collaboration with the Duke Global Neurosurgery and Neuroscience (DGNN) group, has played a significant role in recent years to help MNRH cultivate neurosurgical training, draw in significant medical resources to the region, and explore and improve patient care and outcomes. As a result, MNRH’s local facilities are now able to support the country’s first neurosurgical residency program and graduated Uganda’s first locally trained neurosurgeons in 2015. This partnership has expanded to other parts of the country, with the eventual goal of being able to staff hospitals throughout Uganda with neurosurgeons and increase access to neurosurgical care throughout the country. The focus of Dr. Grant's effort and leadership is on the surgical burden of pediatric neurosurgical care in Uganda. The current scope of work can be differentiated as such:

1. Clinical - Our faculty and residents travel to Uganda multiple times each year to provide neurosurgical training. We work with local physicians and nurses to conduct research and provide neurosurgical care to patients. The bulk of neurosurgical needs in Uganda is focused on trauma and pre and post-operative care.

        2. Research - Stanford residents and medical students have continued to conduct research to help evaluate the current status of             care. In 2015 alone, Stanford collected data on 2032 neurosurgical in-patients seen at Mulago National Referral Hospital (MNRH)             from 2014-2015, 608 of whom were pediatric, and also conducted the first-ever long-term follow-up study of Ugandan patients             receiving neurosurgical care.

LOCATION: Mulago National Referral Hospital, Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital, Mengo Hospital (clinical)

PROGRAM FOCUS: Pre and post-operative care, neurosurgical training, neurosurgical outcomes, pediatric neurosurgery, spine surgery.

OPPORTUNITIES: There are currently research opportunities available for interested students from all disciplines. This can include but is not necessarily limited to travel opportunities to Uganda in support from Med Scholars or SSPS.

CONTACT INFO: Please reach out to the following with any questions regarding ongoing research opportunities.

    Gerald Grant, MD, FACS
    Anand Veeravagu, MD 
    Allen L. Ho, MD (PGY5)
    Arjun Pendharkar, MD (PGY5)
    Michael Zhang, MD (PGY3)
    Silvia Vaca (M5/5)
    Bina Kakusa (M3/5)
    Kathy Ku (M2)

CURRENT WORK: Dr. Odette Harris’ neurosurgical work in Jamaica started when she was a medical student at Stanford doing her Med Scholars research at the University of West Indies. She continued her work when she was awarded the William VanWagenen Fellowship from the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, and it has continued today as she travels every year to teach residents. Her research efforts on traumatic brain injuries were recently awarded with the National Road Safety Council Award by the government of Jamaica.

LOCATION: University Hospital of the West Indies, Jamaica

PROGRAM FOCUS: Neurosurgery

OPPORTUNITIES: Dr. Odette Harris is happy to support medical students' and residents' research interests in any of the following fields: 

    Epidemiology - in collaboration with the Sickle Cell Research Unit on Moyamoya disease
    Trauma - traumatic brain injuries
    Ambulatory services and education

CONTACT INFO: Please reach out with any questions regarding ongoing research opportunities:

    Odette Harris, MD, MPH

CURRENT WORK: Since his time as a pediatric fellow in 2015, Dr. David Hong has travelled to work in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) as a member of the Global Health Committee of the Korean American Medical Association (KAMA). In partnership with the DPRK Medical Association, the group holds international medical conferences, plans biannual medical training trips, and works to empower the local healthcare system. Dr. Hong travels for 1 to 2 weeks biannually with multidisciplinary groups of Korean and non-Korean physicians and students. He presents lectures on his research in the US and trains local physicians at Okryu Children’s Hospital through various neurosurgical procedures for the treatment of brain tumors, moyamoya, hydrocephalus, and congenital brain and skull deformities. Dr. Hong is involved in various ongoing KAMA initiatives that include enriching surgical capacity, establishing a capacity to conduct research by developing a patient database and case logs, and implementing folic acid supplementation to combat neural tube defects.

LOCATION: Okryu Children’s Hospital, Pyongyang, DPRK

PROGRAM FOCUS: Neurosurgical training, international medical conference, pediatric neurosurgery, neurosurgical research

OPPORTUNITIES: There are opportunities for student involvement with ongoing efforts to expand research capacity.

CONTACT INFO: Please reach out with any questions regarding ongoing research opportunities:

    David S. Hong, MD
    Marco Lee, MD