A Message from the Director

Spine Fellowship at the University of Calgary is a combined orthopaedic and neurosurgical clinical experience. The goals of the fellowship are to train neurosurgeons and orthopaedic surgeons in the diagnosis and management of diseases of the spine.

The University of Calgary Spine program is an AO sponsored fellowship program. Our fellows participate in the annual AOSpine fellows forum and are exposed to other global leaders in spine surgery. Learn more about the AOSpine fellowships.

The University of Calgary Spine Program is a multidisciplinary group dedicated to the management of individuals with spinal disease. The program is based at Foothills Medical Centre and the Alberta Children’s Hospital, Level I trauma/tertiary care centres serving the population of the city of Calgary (1.4 million) and the surrounding regions of southern Alberta, southeastern British Columbia and southern Saskatchewan (total 2.0 million). There are an estimated 1600 spinal procedures performed per year at Foothills Medical Centre. In addition, all adult spinal cord injuries are seen and managed in the acute and rehabilitation stages at Foothills Medical Centre.

The emphasis of this spine fellowship is upon the decision-making process and the surgical techniques relevant to the full breadth of spine surgery. At the end of the fellowship, the trainee will have the experience and ability to independently perform a full spectrum of surgical approaches, decompressions, deformity correction and instrumentation in all regions of the spine from the occiput to the pelvis.

Our Fellows train in a wide variety of techniques:

• Anterior and Posterior decompression
• Exposure to multiple different instrumentation systems
  • Anterior and Posterior
  • Cervical, Thoracic and Lumbar
• Cervical and Lumbar disc arthroplasty
• Open and less invasive procedures
• Image guidance/computer-aided surgery
• Intra-operative MRI

The Spine Fellowship year runs from July 1 to June 30 of the following year. Educational conferences include a weekly Fellows Conference, during which in depth didactic presentations on a wide range of spinal conditions are presented, as well as a weekly case conference with discussion and presentation of recent cases and the complex management thereof. The fellow can choose to attend either weekly Orthopaedic or Neurosurgical grand rounds. Regular monthly mortality and morbidity rounds, and a monthly journal club also take place.

Weekly outpatient clinics are performed with the attending staff and informal teaching occurs with junior house staff and residents. Spine Service call occurs for each attending for one week in duration. During this time the house staff and Fellows assigned to the attending surgeon form the spine team on call. Initial assessment and management decisions are made by the resident and fellow with close supervision by the attending staff. All fellow call is at home call with no in-hospital responsibilities. During the course of the year, a clinical research project is required and must be completed prior to the conclusion of the training year. This research project is mutually agreed upon by the fellow and the supervisor of the fellow’s choice.