Surgeons performed 18 operations — including 12 using surgical robots by computer with micro-surgical instruments and a camera.
“Our usual schedule just can’t keep up,” surgeon Sandeep Kaul said. “We’ve got a long waiting list of 350 patients needing gallbladder surgery.
“So we’ve been holding high volume days to get more done in less time, using more robotic surgery.
“Using robots also means less strain on us surgeons and more precision, which is better for patients.”
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Sandeep and fellow surgeon Samrat Mukherjee carried out the robotic surgeries while Haschmat Sarwary completed laparoscopic or ‘keyhole’ surgeries.
All admin and theatre staff, ward nurses and anaesthetists coordinated the surgery programme that took “a lot of planning” to keep everything running smoothly.
This made sure the next patient was ready as soon as the previous surgery was finished, to minimise ‘downtime’.
Reducing waiting times also means fewer bouts of inflammation for patients and fewer visits to A&E during flare-ups.
