The Spina Bifida Adult Care ECHO has recently launched! This training initiative is part of SBA’s larger effort to connect, teach and mentor healthcare professionals to improve care for adults with Spina Bifida.

Spina Bifida was until recently considered a pediatric disease, with most patients not surviving to adulthood. Thanks to the invention of pediatric surgical and other interventions, 75% of children born with Spina Bifida now live to adulthood. However, no specific medical training programs or protocols have concurrently been developed to serve the adult Spina Bifida population. As a result, Spina Bifida patients “age out” of pediatric coordinated care systems and have trouble finding appropriate care for their complex condition. Using the ECHO model, SBA is launching a program to address the needs of this vulnerable population by equipping communities with the right knowledge, at the right place at the right time.

You are invited to participate in their upcoming, inaugural, Spina Bifida Adult Care ECHO cohort.

ECHO is a hub-and-spoke telementoring environment conducted virtually. Hubs include a facilitator and expert faculty who share best practices and contribute to the learning using case-based and didactic methods. Spokes learn from each other and experts from across the United States. For more information on Project ECHO, watch this brief video or visit echo.unm.edu.

Specifics of the Spina Bifida Adult Care ECHO

• Experience case-based learning and expert instruction with like-minded providers who want to start a movement to improve care for adults with Spina Bifida
• Faculty include experts in the care and treatment of adults with Spina Bifida
• Offered at no cost
• CME units available, also at no cost
• Sessions begin Thursday, October 6, 2022. Thirteen, virtual sessions held every other Thursday; sessions begin at 1:00 pm ET