Neurosurgery is a global enterprise without technological or geographic borders. Neurosurgery Outreach Month is a health awareness month launched by the AANS in 2007 and observed annually in August. The focus of 2009 Neurosurgery Outreach Month is international innovations and collaborations that have furthered the specialty.

The association's international outreach efforts are expanding. According to the AANS, in the United States, there are more than 6,000 hospitals, with approximately 3,300 actively practicing board-certified neurosurgeons serving a population of over 303 million people. Among its membership ranks, the AANS has 1,166 International neurosurgeon members in 95 countries and a combined total of 434 Active neurosurgeon members in Canada and Mexico.

Many of the groundbreaking neurosurgical innovations that have enabled U.S. neurosurgeons to greatly improve patient outcome originated outside the United States. Many American neurosurgeons participate in clinical and educational endeavors in developing countries, teaching neurosurgical techniques to their international colleagues, donating surgical devices, and performing lifesaving operations.

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