NEW DELHI: All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) is set to start a robotic surgery training facility for doctors of all clinical branches from the institute and other healthcare facilities in India. This is for the first time that such training will be imparted in India, as so far doctors were going abroad for it. An office memorandum, issued by the director of the institute Prof M Srinivas, stated that keeping in view the availability of adequate number of master trainers at AIIMS, there is an immediate requirement to establish robotic surgery training facilities for the doctors from AIIMS and other healthcare facilities in India. Officials said robotic assisted surgery is one of the newest areas of innovation in minimally invasive surgery. Since AIIMS has been an early adopter of this innovation in medical technology and has a talent pool of faculty using robotic surgical systems for many years, the training facility will prove a boon for all medicos. An open expression of interest will be floated soon to invite robotic surgery system manufacturers to co-create and develop training facilities at various campuses of the institute on not-for-profit basis within the next 3-6 months. For such a facility, AIIMS will provide approx 500 square feet of space, academic space, cadavers/tissues for training, pool of trained faculty etc. A senior official said that manufacturers are expected to install the complete robotic surgery training platform and provide related accessories and consumables free of cost. They may also invite external experts for imparting training on any newer techniques at their own cost with prior permission of AIIMS authorities. According to doctors, robotic assisted surgeries will reduce the long waiting list of surgeries due to an increase in the number of surgeries per day. With the availability of such facilities in India, more and more doctors will be trained for this technology and they will not have to go abroad for such training. Till now, robotic surgeries are limited to the Urology branch only, said officials at AIIMS.
Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/aiims-to-start-robotic-surgery-training-facility-for-doctors/articleshow/98398048.cms
