$5 million for a New Surgical Robot at Royal Perth Hospital

L-R: New Davinci Surgical Robot with Ben Noteboom (RPBG Chief Executive), John Palermo (RPHRF Board Chair), Sally Carbon OAM (EMHS Board Chair), Dr Glenn Murray (EMHS Board Member) and Cate Cassarchis (RPHRF CEO).

RPH Research Foundation is providing $5 million over the next 10 years to support a new Da Vinci Surgical Robot for Royal Perth Hospital, providing access to advanced clinical technology and strategic research opportunity.

This equipment allows RPH’s highly skilled surgeons to conduct a broad range of surgeries in a less invasive manner.

The robot enables surgeons to perform complex, minimally invasive procedures through tiny incisions with enhanced precision, dexterity, and control.

This provides many benefits to patients including smaller scars, less time under anaesthesia and getting back home to their families sooner.

Royal Perth Hospital’s new surgical robot is set to helm a new same-day release program for colectomy patients.

Experienced robotics surgeon Dr Abraham Jacob specialises in colorectal procedures and said it was an exciting step for the hospital.

“It means that patients who have bowel surgery go home the same day, which hasn’t been done anywhere else in Australia, as far as I am aware,” Abraham said.

The robot’s precision surgical tools are controlled by a surgeon who operates the instruments from inside a console, using their middle fingers and thumbs – all the while viewing the patient through a monitor, with premium 4K optics.

“It’s minimally invasive and because the camera is a 3D camera, it allows us to feel like we actually have our hands inside the patient,” Abraham said.

“We’re very excited to have this robot here at Royal Perth and for the benefits it will bring to our patients.”

The robot’s ability to enable smaller incisions allows for quicker recovery times and reduced pain for patients, while also helping surgeons perform procedures more efficiently and with enhanced precision.

In April, RPH Research Foundation Board Chair, John Palermo and CEO, Cate Cassarchis officially handed over the robot to East Metropolitan Health Service (EMHS), with EMHS Board Chair Sally Carbon OAM cutting the ribbon with the robot’s assistance.

Currently used in colorectal and urological surgeries, the technology is expected to be expanded to support a broader range of procedures and research in the future.

First patient doing well

Dr Ruben Rajan was the first surgeon to use the robot at RPH, performing bowel surgery on a man in his 70s on Tuesday 28 April.

“We completed a right hemicolectomy and everything has gone really well,” Ruben said.

“This is an operation where we remove a portion of the bowel and make a connection between the two good ends of bowel - it’s typically done for cancer or benign diseases of the colon,” Ruben said.

The robot assisted Ruben in a second operation on the same day.