The evolution and development of a robotic acute care surgery program

Area of Science:

• Surgical Innovation
• Robotic Surgery
• Acute Care Surgery

Background:

• Emergency general surgery (EGS) involves over 850,000 annual operations in the US.
• EGS patients face disproportionately high complication and mortality rates.
• Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) can reduce EGS patient burden, but adoption is limited.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the development and implementation of a robotic acute care surgery program.
• To expand access to MIS for EGS patients.
• To support acute care surgeons in adopting new technologies.

Main Methods:

• A robotics acute care surgery program was established at a high-volume academic institution.
• Surgeons and fellows completed a defined robotics clinical pathway.
• A robotic surgical platform was implemented for 24/7 EGS case use.

Main Results:

• Three attending surgeons and two fellows achieved proficiency in robotic surgery.
• The program enabled routine, around-the-clock robotic platform use for EGS cases.
• Trained surgeons and fellows actively utilized the robotic system.

Conclusions:

• Robotic surgical technology offers new applications in emergency surgery.
• A dedicated robotic acute care surgery program diversifies surgical practice.
• This program increases access to MIS for EGS patients, irrespective of time.