Virtual Spine: A novel, international teleconferencing program developed to increase the accessibility of spine education during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic effectively ended all major spine educational conferences in the first half of 2020. In response, the authors formed a “virtual” case-based conference series directed at delivering spine education to healthcare providers around the world. We herein share the technical logistics, early participant feedback, and future direction of this initiative. Methods The Virtual Global Spine Conference (VGSC) was created in April 2020 by a multi-institutional team of spinal neurosurgeons and a neuroradiologist. Biweekly virtual meetings were established wherein invited national and international spine care providers would deliver case-based presentations on spine and spine surgery-related conditions via teleconferencing. Promotion was coordinated through social media platforms such as Twitter. Results VGSC recruited over 1000 surgeons, trainees and other specialists, with 50-100 new registrants per week thereafter. An early survey to the participants, with 168 responders, indicated that 92% viewed the content as highly valuable to their practice and 94% would continue participating post-COVID. Participants from the United States (29%), Middle East (16%), and Europe (12%) comprised the majority of the audience. Approximately 52% were neurosurgeons, 18% orthopaedic surgeons, and 6% neuroradiologists. A majority of participants were physicians (55%) and residents/fellows (21%). Conclusion The early success of the VGSC reflects a strong interest in spine education despite the COVID pandemic and social distancing guidelines. There is widespread opinion, backed by our own survey results, that many clinicians and trainees wish to see “virtual” education continue post-COVID.