The United Kingdom’s (U.K.) first ever and biggest robotic-assisted surgery training centre has officially opened its doors. This important advance will help ensure quality surgical practices across the country. Based at the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading and at Winnersh Triangle, the centre provides state-of-the-art robotic training for surgeons. It’s known for robotic surgery techniques, particularly focusing on the da Vinci surgical system. This sophisticated technology will continue to be an indispensable tool in NHS England’s national commitment to… They eventually plan to incorporate robotic assistance into nine of ten keyhole surgeries by 2035.
His clinical work Gijs van Boxel is a Consultant Upper GI Surgeon at Queen Alexandra Hospital in Portsmouth. He highlighted the importance of this training hub as well. Continuing, he noted that the da Vinci system is increasingly central to the thorny treatments of most surgical cancers, especially those of the oesophagus and stomach. So far, it has been implemented in over 300,000 ORs across the UK and Ireland. The centre’s goal is to impart surgeons the skills they need to confidently and, more importantly, safely operate these intricate systems.
Surgeons from all over Europe are coming to the training centre to ensure they have mastered these skills. Gijs van Boxel expressed enthusiasm about the international collaboration, stating, “We’ve got people coming from all over Europe to Reading, to Winnersh Triangle, to help them gain proficiency in robotic surgery. So that’s a super exciting development and something to be proud of.”
Training sessions are varied and cover a wide range, even diving deep into specialized topics like metabolic surgery. Van Boxel confirmed that today’s training featured surgeons from Montpellier, France, emphasizing the centre’s role in fostering global knowledge exchange among medical professionals. “Today, we’ve been training on metabolic surgery. We’ve got French surgeons visiting from Montpellier,” he added.
The latest da Vinci surgical system has four prongs to increase precision while performing these intricate operations. Van Boxel explained the nature of robotic-assisted surgery, clarifying, “It is referred to as robotic-assisted surgery but it is very much controlled by an experienced, qualified surgeon who manipulates the instruments using a different part of the machine to allow us to do the surgery.” Combined with AI-assisted features, this pioneering method gives surgeons more control and accuracy, bringing new levels of patient outcomes.
The creation of this training centre fits well with the increasing shift of adding robotic technology into contemporary medicine. Over 200 da Vinci surgical systems are currently in use across hospitals in the NHS, private sector and local health authorities. This technology is pretty rad—and it’s easy to see how it’s changing the game in operative practice.
“The precision permitted through this system has allowed better outcomes for our patience which is ultimately why we do this.” – Surgeon