A group of surgeons from the civic-run Sion hospital got a demonstration on a robotic surgical system last week. Doctors from the general surgery, gynaecology and urology department were exposed to the functioning of the system as the machine was temporarily set up on the hospital premises.
‘No patients involved’
“It was a dry demo as no patients were involved. The robotic system was placed on the premises for five days and our doctors learnt how to operate it and about the outcomes as compared to routine methods,” said Dr. Mohan Joshi, the hospital’s dean. He said robotic surgeries are more advanced than laparoscopy procedures.
“The robotic arms are more effective in procedures where hand movement of the doctors is difficult. The over all access to the site of surgery is much better and this makes the procedures superior,” Dr. Joshi said.
He said there are disadvantages as well. “First, the machine and the entire set up is very expensive and its cost ranges between ₹25 crore to ₹30 crore. Secondly, every robotic surgery requires consumables which cost up to ₹30,000, thus adding to the cost of the procedure,” he said.
A robot-assisted surgery includes a robot docked near the operation table and a surgeon’s console from where the doctor fires his commands. A 2005 article in Medscape General Medicine on robotic surgeries stated that cost effectiveness was a major issue. It also said studies comparing robotic procedures with conventional operations showed that although the absolute cost for robotic operations was higher, the major part of the increase was attributed to the initial expense on purchase of the robot and its yearly maintenance.
According to Dr. Joshi, in a set up like Sion hospital which conducts mass surgeries, having a robotic system may not necessarily be considered.
“But one has to be exposed to newer technologies and the demonstration offered us knowledge about how the robotic arms are manoeuvred, how useful it is in certain procedures and more,” he said.