Health & Wellness

During Thursday’s monthly board meeting, the Memorial Health Board of Trustees approved the acquisition of a da Vinci Xi® Robotic Surgical System by Intuitive. The new system aims to advance Memorial’s technology base for minimally invasive surgical care across a spectrum of procedures in urology, general surgery, and gynecology.

“As technology becomes more advanced, Memorial Health continues to invest in equipment and services to improve the health and well-being of the communities we serve,” said Chip Hubbs, CEO and President of Memorial Health. “The da Vinci Robotic Surgical System will enhance our surgical suite and join our state-of-the-art robotic surgical assistant (known as ROSA) utilized for hip and knee joint replacements. Expanding robotic surgery at Memorial Hospital allows us to continue our commitment to the very best care for our patients.”

“This additional surgical option builds on our greater strategic vision of enhancing Memorial’s surgical department to further improve patient experience and clinical outcomes,” shares Jeff Hazey, MD, Chief Medical Officer at Memorial Health. “Robotic-assisted surgery is minimally invasive and can provide significant advantages to our patients, including minimal scarring, reduced pain and discomfort, shorter hospital stays, and faster recovery times. We are thrilled to bring enhanced capabilities for minimally invasive surgery to our region.”

Expected to launch in late August/early September, Memorial’s surgical team will be able to perform a series of minimally invasive procedures using Intuitive’s da Vinci surgical system, including:

• General Surgery: hernia repairs, gallbladder removal, foregut procedures (esophageal, hiatal hernia, stomach, and small bowel)
• Urologic Surgery: prostate removal, bladder and kidney cancer surgeries
• Colorectal Surgery: colon and rectal procedures including colon cancer and removal of parts of the colon
• Gynecologic Surgery: endometriosis, hysterectomy, and fibroid removal

Core features of the surgical robotic system include 3DHD visualization, intuitive motion, wristed instruments, and an ergonomic design. As with all da Vinci surgical systems, the surgeon is 100% in control of the robotic-assisted da Vinci system, which translates their hand movements into smaller, more precise movements of tiny instruments inside the patient’s body. The system’s immersive 3DHD vision provides surgeons with a highly magnified view, virtually extending their eyes and hands into the patient.