VIEW | National Park Medical Center Celebrates 100th Robotic Surgery with Da Vinci System | The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

HOT SPRINGS – National Park Medical Center recently celebrated the 100th surgery with its newest robotic surgery system, approximately eight months after completing the first surgery.

The 100th operation was performed in August, but the hospital celebrated the celebration earlier this month.

“We began performing procedures with the Da Vinci in January,” said Shelli Ross, the hospital’s director of surgical services. “In August we completed our 100th Da Vinci procedure. We have now surpassed that; it is cutting-edge technology. We are pleased to offer this service to the Hot Springs community.”

Ross said robotic surgery is “the future.”

“Back when I was a very young nurse, laparoscopic surgery was the new thing, and now laparoscopic surgery is becoming the older type of surgery and we’re moving toward robotics,” she said.

“We are very happy, Dr. Having (Mandy) Rice here with us to take the lead. Dr. Pittman Moore is one of the GYN surgeons who has performed hysterectomies with us. “That means less pain for our patients, less complications and that’s just a great service for our Hot Springs community,” Ross said.

Rice now uses the Da Vinci system almost exclusively.

“The Da Vinci System is the latest and greatest in our surgical technique as far as the tools we can use to give our thoracic surgery colleagues access to the patient’s abdomen and pelvis as well as the chest cavity to perform maximally invasive surgeries – whatever needs to happen in the various body cavities we’re in – but only with very small incisions,” Rice said.

“So patients have less pain because it’s less of a wound in their abdomen or chest cavity, so they recover faster. They have fewer complications in the operating room and out of the operating room. “They live their normal lives faster,” she said.

Surgeons also see benefit in using the system for their procedures, Rice said.

“One of the great things about this is that we are able to achieve ergonomic correctness,” she said.

“During longer procedures, I can stay upright and don’t injure my neck or back.”

“My neck is in line. My back is in line. Instead of all the years of leaning over a patient’s table with our necks and backs misaligned and our knees pressed against the metal bed,” Rice said.

“It’s so much different now. Purely from a surgeon’s perspective, it’s much healthier. I can work longer during the day. Hopefully I can work longer in my career.”

Jessica Pitts, a certified surgical first assistant who has participated in several surgeries using the new system, agreed.

“It’s very different than just the laparoscopy case because it’s more demanding on our bodies to stand up and do a laparoscopy,” she said.

“Using the Da Vinci is obviously easier for the surgeon. It’s easier for me as an assistant. I don’t have to hold a camera for six hours. So it’s nice because these little arms do what they need to do.” “The surgeon sits at the console and all I have to do is swap out the arms if requested,” Pitts said.

While laparoscopic surgery is similar, Rice said the robotic system is much more maneuverable and provides better care.

“It’s about taking the idea of ​​small incisions in laparoscopy but taking it to a much more advanced level,” she said.

The new system is “finer” and gives surgeons a better range of motion and a better view of what they are doing.

“It’s just not possible with super close vision when you’re working with the old technology of the laparoscopic camera or in open surgery where you’re standing over the patient,” she said.

“This allows us to really be just a few centimeters away from the anatomy in question because the viewfinder we have offers 3D, high resolution light, bright light, and we can get very close to the anatomy in question with our very small camera.”

The better range of motion also allows the surgeon to work in more difficult areas than is possible with laparoscopy.

“This allows us to get into very small spaces,” Rice said. “I can work below the liver, where I am with the gallbladder, and I work in a very small space. My instruments are so small that I can get really close to this little little area and see everything very clearly, while the risk of injury to the surrounding tissue or even the tissue I’m working on is much lower.

Jason Fryar, the hospital’s clinical and robotics coordinator, said while this particular system is new to the hospital, robotic surgery is not.

“Everyone seems to really agree with it,” he said.

“They trust the technology. They have been around for some time. But in any industry, robotics is incredibly precise and repeatable,” Fryar said.

“It appears to give patients a sense of security that they might not otherwise have if they gave up complete control to strangers.”

Dr. Mandy Rice (left), a surgeon at National Park Medical Center, brings the da Vinci robotic surgery system into place for a demonstration as Jason Fryar, the hospital’s clinical and robotics coordinator, looks on. (The Sentinel Record/James Leigh)