Technology in Hospitals

Is technology changing the way we run our hospitals? Many experts believe yes. New medications and surgical techniques will reduce the time patients spend in hospital beds. Many technological advances have already been made, but are they really helping?

New advances have been made in operating rooms. Such as the da Vinci Surgical System, introduced in 2000. It preforms numerous surgical procedures from urological surgeries to thorascopically-assisted cardiotomy procedures. Most operations are minimally invasive meaning it operates through small incisions instead of large incisions. The surgeon controls these instruments and the camera from a console located in the operating room. The goal is for the patient to feel less trauma on the body, minimal scarring, and a faster recovery time.

Does the robot really work? Many people are skeptical regarding the effectiveness of the robot. In March of 2009, a woman from Washington underwent a surgery using the surgical robot. The procedure lasted nearly eleven hours. Ten days later, she was rushed to an emergency room, where doctors discovered that her colon and rectum had been torn during the operation. Becuase of this, and many other reported cases, people are hesitant to allow a surgical robot operate on them. Technology is shaping the way our hospistals run every day, but the question of its helpfulness remains.