New robot surgery leads to faster recovery times

8 hours ago

Nicky Fordin Watford

Head of the robotic programme at West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust Dr Vanash Patel said it was "a game changer"

Gordon Anderson/BBC A robot with several arms performing a surgery in an operating theatre. There is a surgeon in a green frock coat who is wearing a face mask. There is a monitor in the background and surgical equipment in the foreground. — Head of the robotic programme at West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust Dr Vanash Patel said it was "a game changer"

Patients in Hertfordshire are among the first to benefit from the most advanced robotic surgery technology ever used by the NHS.

West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust said the new DV5 robot, which costs £3m, will speed up recovery times for cancer surgery and cut waiting lists.

It is designed to operate with higher levels of precision and minimise tissue damage from surgery by allowing surgeons to feel more resistance as they operate.

Head of the robotic programme and colorectal surgeon at the trust Dr Vanash Patel said it was "a game changer".

"What patients care most about is when they'll be able to get back to normal after surgery," he added.

"We've already seen with our robotic service that patients are recovering faster and that they're getting home earlier."

Dr Vanash Patel said the robot had "got better precision which allows us to do better operations"

Gordon Anderson/BBC A surgeon wearing a red V-neck top and a scrub cap in the foreground. There is a team of medical staff behind him surrounding a robot performing surgery. — Dr Vanash Patel said the robot had "got better precision which allows us to do better operations"

Patient Michael Benjamin, 79, from Bushey, Hertfordshire had an operation, assisted by the robot, to remove a potentially cancerous tumour on his bowel.

He was treated at Watford General Hospital, which is one of three hospitals run by the trust.

Colorectal surgeon Dr James Hollingshead performed the operation using a console to control the robot's movements with his hands and looking through a headset.

Dr Patel joined in from a second console to offer his thoughts.

The medical team expected Michael to be in hospital for two days to recover as opposed to spending five or six nights there.

Once he is released, he will be monitored at home by their virtual hospital, a team of doctors and nurses taking measurements of patients using wearable technology.

Michael's surgery went well and he hoped to get back on the golf course before too long

Gordon Anderson/BBC A man sitting by a hospital bed in a ward. He is wearing a blue dressing gown and has a cannula in his left hand. He is smiling as he looks at the camera. — Michael's surgery went well and he hoped to get back on the golf course before too long

The DV5 robot has ten thousand times more computing power than the trust's previous equipment.

Dr Patel said it had ultra-high definition vision with better precision which allowed them to do better operations.

"This robot is going to let the surgeons get a sense of touch again, a sense that we lost with traditional robotic surgery and I believe that that sense of touch is going to lead to less tissue trauma, less tissue damage and patients are going to recover faster" he added.

The arrival of the DV5 robot at Watford General Hospital will free up an existing system to be moved to St Albans City Hospital to treat day cases like hernias and gall bladder removals in high volumes.

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