Story Published: Jan 27, 2012 at 2:40 PM PDT
Story Updated: Jan 27, 2012 at 2:40 PM PDT
Palouse reporter, Stephanie Hale-Lopez tells us how a new surgical robotic system at the Pullman Regional Hospital works and why some medical professionals prefer using it for surgeries, instead of the old-fashioned way.
Surgeons at Pullman Regional Hospital have performed over 30 surgeries ranging from hysterectomies, appendectomies and even prostatectomies since purchasing a piece of robotic equipment known as the da Vinci surgical system merely one month ago. Some surgeons now say they're ready to use the new system almost exclusively versus doing them by hand.
"This now allows us to give patients a minimally invasive option (for surgery) whereas before they had open surgery, now we can do this with just small incisions," said Dr. John Keizur. "Patients are back to work quicker, they have less pain, less time in the hospital…it's just an overall better option for our patients now."
These benefits proved to be true for Jamie Hurley, a Clarkston resident who underwent a hysterectomy under the da Vinci at Pullman Regional.
"I felt a lot better even the day of my surgery. I was out walking the halls at midnight the day of my surgery and before when I had a surgery about 10 years ago, there's no way I would've been able to walk the halls," said Hurley.
It's because of success stories such as Hurley's that has surgeons convinced that robotic surgery is now the best option for patients who need to go under the knife and why surgeons at Pullman Regional are shifting more and more towards only using the robotic equipment. Medical professionals say once you've worked with the high-definition 3-D vision and the 10x magnification that the da Vinci provides, it's hard to go back.
"I first thought that I didn't really need to use it [da Vinci system] to do the same things…but once I used it, I couldn't believe the difference," said Dr. Ric Minudri. "It was obvious to me that this was the better way to do surgery."
Will robots eventually replace surgeons? Medical professionals say most likely not. Although the robotic equipment is actually performing the surgery itself with the assistance of nurses, the surgeon his or herself is the one actually controlling every move the equipment makes.
Surgeons say the instruments the ad Vinci surgical system uses are about the diameter of a pencil. The Pullman Regional Hospital is the only hospital in the local area equipped with surgical technology.
