Rick Schuurman conducts research on functional neurosurgery with a special emphasis on Deep Brain Stimulation, or DBS. This concerns treatments aimed at reducing symptoms and improving the performance of patients with disorders affecting the brain’s physiological networking functions. Schuurman has been studying DBS in relation to neurological diseases, such as Parkinson’s Disease, tremors and dystonia for some time now. He pioneered research on DBS in relation to psychiatric conditions such as OCD and treatment-resistant depression in the Netherlands.

As a part of his professorship, Schuurman will now be focusing on the optimisation of existing DBS applications, further technological innovations and the broader application of DBS in new indications. In addition to his research activities, Schuurman trains neurosurgeons that have completed their training and are eager to gain more in-depth knowledge of these innovative treatments.

Schuurman works as a neurosurgeon at the AMC-UvA and serves as principal investigator within the Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders priority area. He is a co-founder of the Young Neurosurgeon Training Program, an international training programme in functional neurosurgery intended for junior neurosurgeons established in collaboration with the pharmaceutical industry. Schuurman serves as chair of the Dutch Association for Functional Neurosurgery in Movement Disorders, treasurer of the European Society for Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery, board member of the World Society for Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery and member of the Global Working Group for Neurosurgery in Psychiatric disorders.