Student Council of Medical Faculty Tuzla MEDICUS“

– Opening Ceremony – first major activity of the project, which served as the ceremonial opening of the “Brain Week”. Within the public opening ceremony, the plan and program of activities which took place within the week were presented; speeches of the organizers, partners, sponsors and officials were held as well. The activity was held at the Medical Faculty of the University of Tuzla. – Age Workshops – traditional TBW activity which was organized with the aim of promoting neuroscience, healthy habits and useful information about the nervous system, for all age groups, in a specially designed way. The plan and program of each workshop was designed by students. Workshops were be held in kindergartens, elementary schools, high schools, faculties, as well as the Home for Elderly in Tuzla. As in the previous year, workshops were held in the week before the Brain Week itself, so that the results of the workshops could be presented during the duration of the project. – Professional workshops – serve to link research and clinical application of knowledge and practice in areas that are related to the general theme of the project, and which are attractive but also practical for all subsequent engagements and student work. Workshops were held from the following areas: Neurophysiology – EEG, Neuroimaging, Neurophysiology – EMNG, Neurosurgery, Neurophysiology – EP, Endovascular procedures, Brain pathology, Biomedical engineering, etc. The number of participants per workshop was limited to 10 to 20 students, depending on the logistics and administration capacities of the workshops themselves. – Plenary lectures – lectures of prominent experts from the areas in which they operate, which were also related to the general topic of the project “Brain of the Future”. Lectures were based on the concept of the latest, proven and useful facts, which contributed to the advancement of science and which lean away from the traditional “lecture template” from books which are older than several decades. Lectures were held from the fields of neurology, neurosurgery, psychiatry, economies and biomedical engineering. – Scientific student session – a congress session where active students from different universities had the opportunity to submit, prepare and present their work; explain the scientific thesis and compete for different prizes. In addition to the provided awards for best work and presentation, the entire session was supervised and endorsed by the Medical Chamber of the Tuzla Canton, which served as an additional motivator for all the participants. -TBW quiz – competition among student, where different cases from the field of neuroscience were presented together with accompanying actors who have portrayed the signs and symptoms of the given patients´ diagnosis. All the actors have consulted with doctors and professors prior to the event itself, for maximum role efficiency. The goal of organizing this activity was to develop differential, clinical and scientific thinking while trying to find the most correct conclusion to the quiz question. – TBW talks – an activity which previously existed as “Science Café”, got a new form since TBW 2017. The activity is based on the presentation of successful young professionals from areas covered by this years´ theme, with the aim of highlighting the role of an individual in the system of science and developing ideas.

Thanks to the BAW participation, we have gained knowledge and provided information on the latest achievements in the field of neurology, psychiatry and related medical branches for all the 50 active project organizers, with a focus on current opportunities in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Also, we have helped educate citizens of Tuzla and Tuzla Canton, as well as the whole of Bosnia and Herzegovina, on the causes, prevention, diagnosis and treatment of numerous neurological and mental disorders through media and public appearances.

Due to the bigger project growth, in terms of participants and activities, next year we will try to make a work-protocol which will clearly define and outline the roles of each needed team during the Tuzla Brain Week project. With this document, we hope to directly point out the goals and responsibilities of each team engaged in the project so that all the project organizers can call upon this document in their time of need.

Regular updates, aside the BAW period, might prove useful and attract more people into this global initiative.