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Recap of Recent Visiting Professor Programs
China
June 29-30, 2009
The Visiting Professor Program was conducted on June 29-30, 2009 at Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University in Beijing, China. The local organizing committee was headed by Professor Piu Chan, the Director of Chinese Study Group. The Symposium was also supported by Chinese Medical Association and Department of Neurology, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University. The symposium was attended by 105 physicians from different fields of medicine, including movement disorder specialists, attending neurologists, neurology residents and graduated students from Beijing and other regions of China.
This was the third symposium of Visiting Professor Program in China. Following the last two symposiums, lecturers focused on Parkinson’s disease, and also covered other related topics such as Parkinson-plus syndromes, dystonia, essential tremor, and other type of movement disorder, involving progress of etiology, epidemiology, diagnosis and treatment. They also used videos to give the participants an excellent opportunity to discuss real cases.
This program plays an important role in educating movement disorders specialists in China, and establishes a bridge between China and the world in the field of movement disorders.
Thailand
March 27-28, 2009
MDS Visiting Professorship Lecture Program
in Treatment of Parkinson's Disease
Chulalongkorn Comprehensive Movement Disorder Center together with Thai Parkinson's Disease Society held the MDS Visiting Professor Program (VPP) in the treatment of Parkinson's disease (PD) on the 27-28th March 2009 in Bangkok, Thailand.
The objectives of the course were to: 1) Discuss the roles of pathogenesis of PD; 2) List and discuss different therapeutic options in PD as well as its management at various stages of severity; 3) Address specific management of motor and nonmotor manifestations of PD; 4) Recognize various movement disorders through interactive video session.
The course, directed by Roongroj Bhidayasiri, MD., FRCP (Chulalongkorn Comprehensive Movement Disorder Center) had the following faculty: Stanley Fahn (Neurological Institute, Columbia University, New York), Jeff Bronstein (UCLA, Los Angeles), and a number of local faculty. We are very grateful to the MDS educational committee for their generous support of this VPP. In addition to a number of lectures, there were also interactive video sessions presented by residents in which Profs. Fahn and Bronstein have awarded the gold, silver, and bronze medals to the top three interesting cases.
Program Faculty: Drs. Zhen-Xin Zhang, Stanley Fahn, and Louis Tan
China
March 21, 2009
Zhen-Xin Zhang, Department of Neurology and Clinical Epidemiology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital (PUMCH), Chinese Academy of Medical Science hosted a one-day educational course on the latest advancements in Parkinson's disease. The course was also hosted by the Chinese Movement Disorder and PD Society, and Novartis China, and co-organized with Shu-Leong Ho from the Asian Oceanian Section of the MDS.
The program in Beijing involved two foreign speakers (Dr. Stanley Fahn and Prof. Louis Tan), and one local teacher (Zhen-Xin Zhang). The course materials and the discussion were eloquently translated by two local neurologists, Zhang Zhi-Zheng and Li Lin from PUMCH. The morning session covered (1) Early detection of PD and the differential diagnosis of parkinsonism; (2) Early therapeutic options of PD; 
(3) Management of motor complications in advanced PD; and (4) Discussion: The afternoon session covered (1) Management of non-motor symptoms of PD, and (2) Case discussions with video.
This educational course in Beijing had a live video-link to eight additional cities in PR China (see below). A total of 563 participants (Neurologists, trainee Neurologists, General Physicians) from 104 hospitals attended the course in Beijing through the China United Telecommunications Corporation, shown below. This format of teaching was highly cost-effective and educational, and reached a wide audience through the video-link.
| Region | City | Chairman | No. of attendees | Hospitals |
| 1. Northeast | Beijing | Zhang Zhen-Xin | 137 | 21 |
| 2. Northeast | Tianjin | Ye Wen-Xiang | 35 | 9 |
| 3. East | Hangzhou | Hu Xing-Yue | 76 | 17 |
| 4. East | Nanjing | Xu Yun | 52 | 11 |
| 5. Northwest | Xi'an | Zhao Gang | 35 | 7 |
| 6. Mid | Wuhan | Sun Sheng-Gang | 39 | 8 |
| 7. Mid | Changsha | Tang Beisha | 45 | 8 |
| 8. Southeast | Guangzhou | Chen Ling | 88 | 16 |
| 9. Southeast | Fuzhou | Xu Guo-Ying | 56 | 7 |
| Total | 569 | 104 | ||
The Faculty provided very well-received lectures on early detection of PD and differential diagnosis of parkinsonism, including the clinical, pathological, biochemical, imaging features of PD, and management of presymptomatic features of PD. The treatment strategies and options in different stages of PD were expertly reviewed along with motor and non-motor complications, based on currently available evidence.
In the case discussion section, videos of patients with PD for over the past 21 years from PUMCH were provided. It is an excellent opportunity for the participants to review the content of the one-day course. Comprehensive discussion on the practical management was extremely well-received by the audience. Videos which were shot with informed consent were provided by Dr. Zhen-Xin Zhang.
Their feedback was extremely positive and appreciative.
Zhang ZX, Prof. of Neurology
Peking Union Medical College Hospital
Chinese Academy of Medical Science
Beijing, China
Armenia
April 24-25, 2008
The Visiting Professor Program was conducted on April 24-25, 2008 in Moscow House in Yerevan, the Capital of Armenia. It was directed by the heads of organizations: Wolfgang Oertel, Chairman of the MDS-ES, and Parounak Zelveian, President of the Armenian Medical Association. Local organizing committee was headed by Zaruhi Tavadyan, Movement Disorders Group Leader, ALYN, and Samson Khachatryan, Chairman of ALYN. The Symposium was also supported by National Institute of Health of Armenia and Department of Neurology, Yerevan State Medical University.
The Symposium was attended by nearly 180 specialists from different fields of medicine - adult and child neurologists, psychiatrists, family physicians, interns, general practitioners, psychologists, neurology residents from Yerevan and other regions of Armenia.
This was the first meeting on Parkinson's disease and other Movement Disorders in Armenia. The seminar was impressive by extensive participation of local specialists and overall coverage of the main topics of the field. Being mainly focused on Parkinson's disease, lecturers also covered very important topics on Parkinson-plus syndromes, Restless legs syndrome, essential tremor, dystonias, Huntington's disease and other choreas, Tourette syndrome and tic disorders, drug-induced Movement Disorders, as well as sleep and Movement Disorders.
The program provided an excellent opportunity to educate specialists in Armenia and establish closer connections between Armenian physicians and researchers and the international field of Movement Disorders, thus intensifying the relations between both scientific communities.
India
November 23-24, 2007
Visiting Professors:
Kapil Sethi, MD, FRCP
Eduardo Tolosa, MD
Hosts:
Prof. Meena Gupta, Director, IHBAS
Dr. Kiran Bala, Organising Secretary
Prof. Madhuri Behari, Chairperson Scientific Committee
Institute of Human Behaviour & Allied Sciences, Delhi, India
The visiting professors of the program were:
Dr. Kapil D. Sethi, Professor of Neurology, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, Georgia
Prof. E. Tolosa, Professor of Neurology, Barcelona, Spain.
The program included 6 sessions spread over 2 days:
Day 1
- An overview of Movement Disorders
- Parkinson's Disease
- Interesting cases of Parkinson's Disease
Day 2
- Video sessions on interesting cases of Dystonias, Parkinson's Disease, RLS and other Movement Disorders
- Psychogenic Movement Disorders
- Update on Tourette Syndrome
- Latrogenic Movement Disorders
- Skills Workshops on use of Botulinum Toxin in Focal Dystonias
The delegates appreciated the knowledge and skills of both the experts and it was an educational program in a real sense for all the delegates. The collection of video clippings were marvelous. The approach to patients with Parkinson's disease at various stages as discussed by the experts on patients during Session-III was informative as well as educational. There was an active discussion by the local faculty as well as delegates. The clarity of eliciting various bedside signs was appreciated by the PG students.
Since ours is a Neuropsychiatry Institute, the session on Psychogenic Movement Disorders was of special interest for PG students as well as faculty. Interesting videos and cases that were presented attracted active participation of the delegates.
Hands-on workshops on Botulinum Toxin in Focal Dystonia were of great help for many young neurologists interested in the same. They were given hands-on training by local faculty, Prof. Meena Gupta and Prof. Madhuri Behari.
The program was attended by 178 delegates from all over India. The delegates included neurophysicians, general physicians interested in neurological disorders, trainees in neurology, psychiatry and rehabilitation services. The program was awarded 11 hours of CME accreditation by Delhi Medical Council.
China
October 17 - 18, 2007
Visiting Professors:
Cristina Sampaio, MD
Olivier Rascol, MD
Host: Shengdi Chen, MD
Scientific & Technology Plaza, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, P.R. China
Shengdi Chen, Department of Neurology, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine hosted a 1½-day course on the concept of evidence-based medicine and its applications in clinical trials on Parkinson's disease (PD) at Ruijin Hospital. The course was co-organized with Shu-Leong Ho from the Asian-Oceanian Section of the MDS. Cristina Sampaio and Olivier Rascol, who were sponsored via the MDS Visiting Professorship program, presented the talks and led the interactive discussions.They provided a very well-received overview of evidence-based medicine, design and conduct of various forms of clinical trials, including ethical considerations. The treatment strategies and options in different stages of PD were expertly reviewed along with motor and non-motor complications, based on currently available evidence. The course materials, the talks and the discussion were eloquently translated by a team of interpreters led by Dr. Xiao Qin. GSK (China) provided the wireless voting devices to the participants for their immediate reaction and analysis of the discussions, via an unrestricted educational grant. This voting equipment was extremely helpful in promoting a lively and constructive discussion with the participants during the course. About 70 participants took part in the course. Their feedback was extremely positive and appreciative. This course took place the day after a symposium on basic and clinical aspects of PD and movement disorders was held at the same venue. The invited speakers at this symposium included Philip Thompson and Peter Lewitt. This whole event was coordinated with the 1st AOPMC, which was held from 20th to 22nd October 2007 in Singapore.
India
January 10-12, 2006
Visiting Professor: Niall Quinn, MD
Host: Madhuri Bahari, MD, DM
The All India Institute of Medical Societies (AIIMS) in Delhi, led by Prof. Madhuri Behari, was pleased to welcome Prof. Niall Quinn as a Visiting Professor. While in India, Prof. Quinn visited Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences in Hyderabad. During his stay, Prof. Quinn provided the audience of over 100 participants with lectures and video presentations of typical and atypical cases, including MSA, PSP and other tauopathies, the medical and surgical management of Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease and other choreas, dystonia tics and myoclonus. Dr. Behari was very appreciative of Prof. Quinn's participation, noting that "His years of vast experience, in-depth study of different types of Movement Disorders, very well taken video clips of common as well as uncommon Movement Disorders, and clear, concise and unambiguous delivery of lectures went a long way in helping the participants understand the basic characteristics of several Movement Disorders and differentiate different types of parkinsonisms from one another, especially the subtle clinical features and management of these disorders."
Tunisia
January 12-14, 2006
Visiting Professors:
Olivier Rascol, MD, PhD
Yoshikuni Mizuno, MD
Host: Neziha Gouider-Khouja, MD
MDS was invited by the Tunisia National Institute of Neurology to provide two Visiting Professors. In Tunis (Tunisia), Profs. Olivier Rascol and Yoshikuni Mizuno were graciously hosted by Dr. Neziha Gouider-Khouja. Over the course of three days (January 12-14), lectures on the pathogenesis, genetics, clinical aspects and treatment management options for Parkinson's disease and other Movement Disorders were presented to approximately 80 participants from Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria. Several video cases were also discussed in two lively sessions which were highly enjoyed by the audience. Profs. Mizuno and Rascol as well as the audience proclaimed the course a great success and extended gratitude to Dr. Gouider-Khouja for her efforts in preparing this course in Tunisia. This first and successful initiative of MDS in North Africa has been followed in Rabat, Morocco, a few months later (April 21-22), by a two-day teaching course on clinical trials in Parkinson's disease endorsed by MDS. This course, organized under the auspices of the Toulouse (France), Lisbon (Portugal, Fes and Rabat (Morocco) Universities, was attended by a number of the Tunis participants who were trained by Profs. Rascol, Sampaio, Benomar, Messouak and others on ethical, methodological, scientific and practical aspects of randomized clinical trials in Parkinson's disease.
China
June 6-8, 2006
Visiting Professor: Lin Zhang, MD, PhD
Host: Youlin Qiao, MD, PhD
The Dalian Medical University enthusiastically welcomed Dr. Lin Zhang as a Visiting Professor to China. On the first day of his visit, Dr. Zhang was invited to tour the University Hospital, as well as enjoy dinner with the President of the University and the Chair of the Department of Neurology. During Dr. Zhang’s three-day visit, he delivered numerous lectures and conducted seminars, which were attended by physicians, medical students and residents. As an engaging and interactive lecturer, Dr. Zhang periodically requested volunteer assistance in demonstrating various diagnostic techniques, which the attendees put into immediate use. On his final day as Visiting Professor, Dr. Zhang was able to observe three patients in an outpatient clinic, as well as one inpatient with a group of medical students and several physicians as an audience. The Visiting Professor concluded his visit with a seminar on the usefulness of the UPDRS, indications of DBS surgery treating Parkinson’s disease, and the selection of various classes of PD medications. The seminar was then followed by a question-and-answer session. Both Dr. Zhang and the Dalian Medical University unanimously felt that the program was a hugely successful venture.
Begun in 2003, The Movement Disorder Society's Education Committee has implemented Visiting Professorships in various global locations. These programs were welcomed with great enthusiasm and demonstrated the Society's continuous effort to reach out to the international community of Movement Disorder specialists.
Previously Implemented Visiting Professor Program Locations
