Extracurricular External Academic Internships at the Institut Chiari & Siringomielia & Escoliosis de Barcelona

Published by ICSEB at 5 September, 2025

The Institut Chiari & Siringomielia & Escoliosis de Barcelona (ICSEB) is a highly specialised neurosurgical medical centre. It is firmly committed to the integration of research, development, and innovation (R&D&I) into clinical practice; with the aim of increasing the effectiveness of treatments and deepening the understanding of diseases related to the Filum Terminale. The centre also promotes the study, publication, and dissemination of the new clinical concepts applied at ICSEB within the international scientific community.

With these objectives in mind, ICSEB officially established the R&D&I Department in 2011. This was the result of the constant research work that had already been part of the daily clinical activity of Dr M. B. Royo-Salvador’s team. Since then, the ICSEB has been accredited as an R&D&I medical centre by the Spanish Certification Agency (ACIE).

It is also important to remember that, since 2018, our Department has collaborated with the Faculty of Biology of the University of Barcelona (UB), within the framework of the Educational Cooperation Agreement. Through this collaboration we receive students of Biology, Biotechnology, and Biomedicine who carry out extracurricular external academic internships at our centre.

Thanks to this initiative, our researchers benefit from valuable contribution of young graduates who continually join our R&D&I team. Their support enables progress in research projects— despite the constant demands of clinical and surgical activity — mainly through data collection and analysis.

At present , universities and organisations offer internship programmes in hospitals and health centres abroad, often focusing on specific specialities. This year, for the first time, we have collaborated with the Faculté de Médecine, Maïeutique et Métiers de la Santé of the Université de Lorraine (Nancy), in relation to their medical internships. In fact, we have recently welcomed a third-year student who completed her clinical placement focused on Arnold-Chiari I Syndrome.

University internships in external partner institutions, both in Spain and abroad, provide students with the opportunity to gain field experience, learn about different health systems, and broaden their professional perspectives.

At ICSEB, we are delighted to welcome young future professionals to our team and to count on their collaboration. We believe that this kind of agreement with the students’ home faculties greatly enriches our activity — both scientifically and clinically.