Challenges and Opportunities of Robotic-Assisted Surgeries in Healthcare

This presentation discusses the challenges and opportunities of incorporating robotic-assisted surgeries in healthcare. It explores the benefits, ethical responsibilities, and future technologies in this field. The case study focuses on Strathfield Private Hospital, a pioneer in cardiac care services.

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HEALTHCARE

Organizational Overview:
Strathfield Private Hospital
is regarded as a pioneer in
the area of cardiac care
services (Strathfield Private
Hospital 2019).
The organization is a part
of the Ramsay health care
and offers superior quality
services for critical and
complex disorders
The vision of the healthcare
organizations is to deliver
high quality of care and at
the same time ensure long
term profitability.

The healthcare organization offers a wide range of care services that
span across departments such as orthopedic, urology and breast
cancer surgery (which comprises of a 9 day turnaround from
diagnosis to treatment)
In addition to this, the organization also offers care services across
areas such as endoscopy, ENT, colorectal surgery, sleep studies and
bariatric surgery
The organization was ranked as the ‘Top Hospital’ in 2016 for its
positive patient outcome across areas of infection control and fall
prevention
The organization was the first medical centre in Australia to have
conducted a robotic obesity procedure
The organization has a specialized group of talented physicians and
healthcare professionals and intends to integrate innovation in
medical technology in terms of advanced robot assisted surgery so as
to acquire clinical excellence.
Scope of healthcare activities:

The stakeholders involved in the process of
medical technology acquisition for Strathfield
Private Hospital comprises of:
Board of directors and advisory board of the
Ramsay Health Care and Strathfield Private
Hospital
The management
The Physicians
The Multidisciplinary team of professionals
The patients
Stakeholder perspective:

The medical technology that has been
considered in this case includes the
incorporation of robotic-assisted surgeries
Stiff resistance to organizational change
Lack of conceptual clarity
Role confusion
Instrumentation
Tactile feedback
Related cost
Surgical workflow
Challenges in context of medical
technology:

Excerpt from an interview with a physician;
“Robot assisted surgery sounds pretty
interesting but I wonder would the robots
replace the human care system altogether?
I’m not quite sure about this and what if
there is a technical fault, who is responsible?”
Interviews with stakeholders:

Excerpt from an interview with a nurse;
“ I am not pretty sure about how this is going
to work out…Like there is a surgery going on
with a robot by the bed side.. I wonder how
comforting would it be to the patient.”
Interviews with stakeholders:

Excerpt from the interview with the operational
manager;
“We are trying to come up with something
innovative you know..that would revolutionize
the healthcare system here.. We expect to
impart excellent care services and intend to
enhance our standard of care services every
day. The robot assisted surgery concept is
new but we plan to make the care process
precise and accurate by integrating AI in
healthcare.”
Interviews with stakeholders:

Project implementation issue that
attracted media attention:
The technological innovation in terms of
integration of robotic surgery attracted
apprehensions from Physicians and care
professionals about artificial intelligence
taking over the jobs. This attracted huge
media attention and questioned on the
rationale of replacing human skills with
artificial intelligence.

Opportunities in relation to
medical technology:
Shorter span of
hospitalization
Minimal pain and
discomfort caused to
patient
Smaller incisions and
reduced risk of infections
Reduced scarring
Minimal blood loss and
need of transfusions
Accelerated recovery
Convenience in conducting
complex surgeries

Advantages of robotic
surgeries:
Enhanced precision
and accuracy
Improved dexterity
Better visualization
Better access to the
body through
minimal invasion

Ethical responsibilities in relation
to use of medical technology:
Ensure no harm by
bridging the time lag
between the physician’s
command and surgical
procedure performed by
the robot
Ensure positive outcome
equivalent to human
intelligence and skill
Ensure no harm to
patient
Ethical issue associated
with mechanical failure

Promising technologies in
future:
Integration of hepatic
and tactile sensing
Incorporation of force
feedback technology
Use of Indocyanine green
marker to identify vessel
perfusion so as to
differentiate tissue
density and identify
oncological, vascular or
neurological tissues
(Kroh and Chalikonda
2015)

Recommendations:
Improved
instrumentation
Encourage surgeon’s
learning
Conduct appropriate
training
Identify risks and
develop appropriate
mitigating measures

The healthcare institute forms the first
healthcare organization in Australia to have
conducted a robot assisted bariatric surgery
At present the hospital has a team of highly
qualified surgeons to perform robot assisted
surgeries
The use of AI in healthcare has revolutionized
the concept of care delivery but has posed
several ethical concerns which must be
addressed with clarity so as to integrate the
medical assisted technology within a
healthcare system
Conclusion:

Strathfield Private Hospital. 2019. Welcome
to Strathfield Private Hospital. [online]
Strathfieldprivate.com.au. Available at:
https://www.strathfieldprivate.com.au/
[Accessed 30 May 2019].
Kroh, M. and Chalikonda, S. eds.,
2015. Essentials of robotic surgery. Springer
International Publishing.
References:

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