Health Care Innovaton – Robotic Surgery

Charmian Love

September 5, 2009

Over dinner last night with a good friend who works at Guy’s Hospital (London), we had a lively conversation about new technologies being used in hospitals. I was amazed to hear that robotic surgery is not just another one of those ideas that is stuck in an endless ‘approval’ process or being ‘tested’ by regulators, but is actually used in practice today. Frequently!

Guys’ Hospital has two DaVinci Robots which are used in a range of surgeries. Apparently surgeons are using it for a range of procedures and find it effective in doing very fine and precise surgeries, as the robots can accentuate the movements of the surgeon. A wave of the hand by the surgeon translates into very small and discreet movements by the robot.

It is exciting to see technology innovations being applied in practice to help improve health care delivery.