News

We have three vacancies within the NSN executive.
Please consider joining our friendly committee!

Deadline for EOI: Monday 26th February 2024​

We welcome all NSN members to consider joining the National Spine Network (NSN) Executive Board for three upcoming roles:

1. General executive member
2. Research officer
3. AQP representative

The NSN are keen to invite applications from the whole of the MDT

If you wish to learn more about each of these roles, please email info@nationalspinenetwork.co.uk

Please send in your firm expressions of interest to info@nationalspinenetwork.co.uk by Monday 26th February 2024, with the following information:

1. The position you wish to apply for
2. a short summary (no more than 300 words) of why you wish to apply

Election for the new exec members will occur at our AGM on Tuesday 5th March at the NSN study day.

More details regarding the day can be found here: https://nationalspinenetwork.co.uk/NSN2024

Clinicians, nurses, AHPs working across the patient pathway can view and bookmark the new, easy-to-navigate format: https://girft-interactivepathways.org.uk/

GIRFT spinal services clinical lead Mike Hutton and content development manager Polly Hyde have worked with a range of stakeholders* on the new interactive version of our existing pathway, which can be used and bookmarked on all handheld and desktop devices in a range of care settings.

The easy-to-navigate, web-based tool is designed for use by clinicians, nurses and allied health professionals (AHPs) at every stage of the CES patient pathway, from GP presentation to post-operative care. It guides users through examples of the processes and key decisions they should work through for diagnosis, treatment and follow-up of patients in their care.

Mike said: “Cauda Equina Syndrome (CES) can be devastating to a patient’s quality of life if the condition is not managed in a time efficient manner. Our interactive pathway means clinical teams can see best practice for diagnosis and treatment at the click of a button on their phone or device, which can aid timely decision making in a period when time is most critical.” More info: https://bit.ly/3Qi06Dp

GIRFT would like to give thanks to the organisations who have collaborated on, reviewed and co-badged this pathway every step of the way:

British Association of Spine Surgeons (BASS), British Association of Urological Surgeons (BAUS), British Orthopaedic Association (BOA), The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP), National Spine Network (NSN), The Royal College of Radiologists (RCR), Society and College of Radiographers (SCoR), Society of British Neurological Surgeons (SBNS), Cauda Equina Champions Charity, Spinal Injuries Association, British Society of Skeletal Radiologists (BSSR)

We welcome all NSN members to consider joining the National Spine Network (NSN) Executive Board for two upcoming roles:

1. Treasurer-Elect
2. General executive member
(For a general executive member, the NSN are particularly keen to invite applications from the whole of the MDT)

If you wish to learn more about each of these roles, please contact the NSN Secretary - Suzie McIlroy

Please send in your firm expressions of interest to info@nationalspinenetwork.co.uk by Thursday 6th July 2023, making clear the position you wish to apply for and a short summary of why you wish to apply.

The NSN will then be in touch shortly after the closing date on the next steps, which may include a full application and/or interview.

We welcome all NSN members to join us for the Annual General Meeting 2023, which will be held virtually via Zoom Webinars at 7pm on Wednesday 12th July 2023.

Registration is required to attend!

Visit the dedicated registration portal here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_fvIm-Vz_QJyYo7x-OT_SYw

The AGM is for members only, and as part of registration you will need to provide your 8-digit NSN membership number. If you are unaware of your membership number, please THIS GUIDE

If you are unable to attend, the recording from the AGM will be uploaded to the members area of the NSN website after the event.

A new pathway helping clinicians to better diagnose and care for patients with suspected Cauda Equina Syndrome (CES) is now available from the Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) team.

GIRFT worked collaboratively a multidisciplinary group of more than 60 healthcare professionals to develop the interactive pathway, designed to support teams to diagnose and treat the condition without delay. It offers best practice along all stages of the pathway, from presentation to GP or in the community through to post-operative care. It is supported by detailed guidance, including best practice for referrals and imaging, surgical techniques and pain control.

The resources were developed in collaboration with the former Best MSK Health improvement programme and are co-badged by 11 professional bodies, including BASS, NSN, BOA and SBNS.

GIRFT is running a webinar on 2nd March 2023 (1pm-2.15pm) to discuss the stages of the pathway and to allow clinicians to ask questions. Register now.

Submission deadline:  Monday 20^th February 2023

Why not showcase your work implementing best practice in spinal care by presenting a poster at the National Spine Network annual meeting, to be held at the SEC Centre in Glasgow on Monday 17^th April 2023?

The role of the National Spine Network is to provide opportunities for sharing and learning best practice, innovation and transformation in spinal care.  We invite all NSN members and/or delegates to this year’s NSN meeting to submit an abstract (or draft/ digital version of a poster) to be considered for a poster presentation.

PLEASE NOTE: This is separate to the BritSpine 2023 Abstract Submission process - for more information about BritSpine, please visit: www.BritSpine.com

If your poster is accepted for the NSN Meeting, you will need to bring your poster to the NSN meeting in Glasgow to discuss with delegates during the various networking opportunities throughout the day.

You may also request to be considered to present at the 3 minute quick-fire oral poster session. 

POSTER SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS

Submission deadline:  Monday 20^th February 2023

Posters that provide a summary of best practice or innovative work relevant to spinal care pathways in the UK will be considered. You/ your team should have led or been integrally involved in the work.

Submission process:  

Submissions should be made by email to abstracts@nationalspinenetwork.co.uk, marked ‘For Attention of Christine Comer’ before the deadline of Monday 20th February. Submissions after this date will not be considered.

Please indicate your presentation preference:

In your email, please let us know if you prefer your submission to be considered for

a)    Poster display only
b)    Poster display and 3 minute oral presentation

Submission formats:

In the interests of encouraging everyone to share their work and minimising work and effort, we will accept a range of formats for posters submitted for consideration as follows:

a)    Completed or draft poster in digital format (for example if you have a poster already prepared that you have used previously at a research conference you can submit a power-point slide or clear photo of your poster, or if you have started preparing a poster using power-point or similar this can be submitted even if not yet finalised).

b)    Poster abstracts (the more traditional format for research conferences is a text summary (maximum 250 words) of what will be included on poster. We would suggest using subheadings such as ‘Background/introduction’; ‘Innovative Practice/Methods’; ‘Evaluation/ Results/Impact’ The abstract should also provide a title, details of the authors and their affiliations, and any acknowledgements and references.

You will be informed by email of the decision on whether your poster has been accepted for presentation at the NSN Meeting by Wednesday 1^st March 2023

If your poster submission is selected:

It will be your responsibility to prepare your final poster, have it printed, transport it and put up your poster on arrival at Glasgow SEC on Monday 17 April 2023. You will also need to register for the meeting (Registration can be found at www.nationalspinenetwork.co.uk/registration)

Poster size: posters should be between A0 (841x1189mm) and A1 (594x841mm) in portrait orientation (not landscape)

Font size: a minimum Arial font size 20 should be used

If this is your first time preparing/submitting a poster, you may find the attached template useful as a starting point, or might like to look at the example posters and templates via a Google Search. We would encourage you to make your poster as visually impactful as possible, whilst still being easy to read.

Link to Survey: https://forms.gle/YczZ4Tvr5KpyFy65A

The aim of CPPP is to support back pain patients to resume normal activities through supervised exercise and challenging unhelpful beliefs and behaviours.

Combining exercise with behavioural management within CPPPs is recommended within NICE National guidelines (NG59) and the National Back and Radicular Pain Pathway (NPRPP). The recent NHS England’s Best MSK Health restoration and recovery programme has focussed attention on the lack of availability of appropriate CPPP across England.

The aim of this survey is to gather information about current provision of CPPP in the UK. You don’t need to be involved in CPPP provision to complete the survey – we are interested in understanding the gaps as well as understanding the range of programmes combining physical and psychological approaches currently offered to people with back pain.

Why should I engage with the survey?
By completing this survey you will be contributing to:

• Developing the evidence base relating to back pain care in the UK.
• Establishing a clearer picture of current services and service gaps in the UK and helping to establish foundations for future work.
• Gathering information to inform clinicians and service decision makers (e.g. commissioners and managers) to guide improvements in service delivery in line with national guidance.

How will the survey Information be used?
Survey responses will also be used to:

• Better understand different models of CPPP provision
• Establish a network to support clinicians to deliver CPPP
• Provide a basis to make recommendations for future work.

What will happen with the findings of the survey?
The findings of the survey will be analysed and reported through the National Spine Network website, Social Media via Twitter, and submitted to a national spinal conference.

The CPPP session at Virtual Britspine 2021 highlighted the difficulties of implementing CPPP with significant variations in intensity, outcome measures and delivery in current programmes.

A key component of the NICE NG59 Guidelines in managing persistent low back pain is the provision of CPPP.

The National Spinal Network (NSN) is preparing a national survey to explore current practice and barriers to implementing CPPP.

We want to hear from you- even if you don’t have access to CPPP!

Further details will be sent to all NSN members and posted to Twitter (@NatSpineNetwork)

If you are not currently a member, sign up HERE or follow us on Twitter!

Are you completing a research project or data collection exercise you want to have a wider reach with your peers and colleagues?

The National Spine Network (NSN) is a member of the United Kingdom Spine Societies Board (UKSSB) and they are now providing a platform for distribution of your surveys via the UKSSB Newsletter, which is sent to all constituent society members on a regular basis (usually around once a month), which includes NSN members.

Submitted surveys will be assessed by the UKSSB and accepted surveys will be sent to all constituent society members in the next newsletter. 

For more information, visit: https://www.ukssb.com/survey-distributions

***Please Note***

This form and process is administered by the United Kingdom Spine Societies Board (UKSSB) on behalf of the above listed Spine Societies.
Surveys distributed are not endorsements by the UKSSB or the Spine Societies.
We cannot guarantee that surveys will be approved for distribution by the societies, or that members will complete the surveys that are approved and sent.