Minutes of the 6th Annual Society of Neurocritical Care (SNCC) Conference in Agra, India
Published on: February 20, 2024
The 6th Annual Conference of the Society of Neurocritical Care (SNCC) was held in the historical city of Agra, India from October 13th to 15th, 2023 at the DoubleTree by Hilton. SNCC leadership had contemplated an ambitious program right from the beginning, and it was a much-awaited event for all attendees. The event was endorsed by the Neurocritical Care Society (NCS) and organized by Dr. Ranvir Tyagi, Dr. Rakesh Tyagi, and Dr. Diptimala Agarwal, leading practitioners in Agra.
The theme of the conference was ‘Connecting Together – Neurocritical Care in the LMICs (low- and middle-income countries).’ The scientific program was designed to include topics related to various specialties in neurosciences including intensive care, neurology, neurosurgery, nursing, clinical neuropsychology, and physiotherapy. As SNCC is affiliated with 14 international societies, the scientific schedule was programmed to include representation from each society. The event was historic in that it brought together renowned faculty from ten countries on a common platform. The international faculty who participated in the conference were Sarah Livesay (USA), Michael Diringer (USA), Aarti Sarwal (USA), Raimund Helbok (Austria), Masao Nagayama (Japan), Walter Videtta (Argentina), Yasser Abulhasan (Kuwait), Alexander Kulikov (Russia), Gentle Shrestha (Nepal), Jonathan Rhodes (UK), Maria Isabileta Rogado (Philippines), and Kabita Sitoula (Nepal). Three additional faculty joined us on the virtual platform, including Gisele Sampaio (Brazil), Daniel Godoy (Argentina), and Andrea Lavinio (UK).

The conference was attended by over 200 delegates from India and abroad. The event commenced with two workshops on Neuronursing (led by Course Directors Ms. Anjali Devi and Ms. Nidhi Singh) and Brain Ultrasound (led by Dr. Ankur Luthra and Dr. Hemanshu Prabhakar) on October 13th. Both workshops were highly successful, with over 100 participants in the Neuronursing workshop and as many as 35 participants in the Brain Ultrasound workshop. In addition to local faculty who attended the two workshops, there was also active participation from international faculty, with Sarah Livesay (USA), Maria Isabelita Rogado (Philippines), and Kabita Sitoula (Nepal) attending the Neuronursing workshop and Aarti Sarwal (USA) and Gentle S. Shrestha (Nepal) attending the Brain Ultrasound workshop.
Conference sessions began in earnest on October 14th, with Aarti Sarwal, Gentle Shrestha, and Raimund Helbok providing an overview on the theme of the conference in the first session. Other conference highlights included orations and the NCS Panel. The SNCC Oration was delivered by Dr. R. K. Mani and centered on brain death, his area of interest. There were several sessions dedicated to debates and panel discussions on topics pertinent to neurocritical care in LMICs. A dedicated session on non-technical topics was also conducted for a general audience, while e-posters were presented by members in parallel rooms along with an ongoing quiz for attendees.

In the evening, a function organized by the College of Neurocritical Care (CNCC) took place with much excitement in the main hall. As part of this function, SNCC Fellowship (FNCC) certificates were distributed to 4 trainees who successfully completed the one-year training program: Drs. Gopinath T, Poonam Rani, Hariharan M, and Murali T In addition, Honorary Fellowships were awarded to 8 National and 3 International faculty. These included Charu Mahajan, Indu Kapoor, Jaya Wanchoo, Sivakumar MN, Shalini Nair, Pratheema Ramachandran, N Selvarajan, Uma Hariharan, Sarah Livesay, Michael Diringer, and Walter Videtta.

The CNCC function was followed by the formal inauguration of the event. The chief guests for the function were Prof. S P Singh Baghel, Minister of State for Health and Dr. Prashant Lawania, Guest of Honor. An important highlight of the inaugural function was the release of a book titled Principles and Practice of Neurocritical Care. Presidential citations were also announced and certificates given to the recipients. The inaugural ceremony was followed by a well-received banquet dinner and cultural program.

Among the sessions on day 2 of the conference was the Past President SNCC Oration, which was delivered by the founding president of SNCC, Dr. Harsh Sapra. Another highlight of the second day was the new SNCC Fellows session, which was introduced to involve our past Fellows.
The conference ended with the valedictory function. I am certain that everyone returned home not only enriched with scientific knowledge but also carrying fond memories of the mesmerizing Taj Mahal and sweet taste of the famous local delicacy called ‘Petha.’
Hemanshu Prabhakar, MD, PhD is President SNCC, Department of Neuroanaesthesiology and Critical Care, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India