Robotic tech goes mainstream in hospitals in Hyderabad

Hyderabad: Just half-a-decade ago, robotic surgeries were the domain of corporate hospitals in Hyderabad. At that time, the robotic surgical technology was novel, as there were only a few trained surgeons adept in handling the robotic arm from a controlling workstation and at the same time operate on the patient.

Fast forward to 2024, now all major government and private hospitals in Hyderabad have robotic-based systems to conduct surgeries. While private hospitals in the city had initially taken the lead in launching the technology, the then BRS government through its massive medical infrastructure upgrade ensured that government hospitals are not left behind in the technology curve.

In the last year or so, all government tertiary hospitals in Hyderabad including Gandhi Hospital, MNJ Cancer Hospital, NIMS and MGM Government Hospital in Warangal were equipped with robotic systems to facilitate surgeons.Due to its versatility, the robotic technology is being successfully employed in a wide array of medical applications by various medical departments in private and government hospitals.

While surgeons at MNJ Government Cancer Hospital employed the technology to remove tumours, senior surgeons at private hospitals like Asian Institute of Nephrology and Urology (AINU) in Hyderabad leveraged robotic technology to conduct 1,000 surgeries in urology and nephrology. At NIMS, last year, the BRS government launched a high-end robotic system with a cost of Rs 35 crore.

“Robotic surgeries could be handy and far more effective in isolating and removing tumours in patients. However, conducting robotic surgeries requires a lot of capacity building. In fact, our team of surgeons visited multiple tertiary hospitals in the country to learn from experts on conducting robotic surgeries,” Dr Jayalatha, Director, MNJ Cancer Hospital, said.

Senior urologist and AINU MD Dr C Mallikarjuna said the technology of robotic surgery was far more effective than the traditional way of conducting a surgery. “The precision of robotic surgery allows for the targeted removal of tumours while preserving the majority of the kidney. This is in stark contrast to traditional methods that may necessitate the removal of the entire kidney,” he said.