A 66-year-old has received the first robot heart operation at St George’s Hospital in Tooting, now one of only three units in London who can perform the innovative procedure.
After having lived with heart disease for 24 years, recent years saw care worker Paul Wickens’ symptoms begin deteriorating, until this new procedure completely cured his symptoms, only requiring four days of recovery compared to the usual week.
Three months after receiving the pioneering surgery, care worker Paul Wickens has thanked the hospital team for their life-saving work on his robotic coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG).
Wickens said: “I am so grateful and lucky to be born in a time when such technology has come to the fore and I can’t thank the team enough – my symptoms have gone and I can move on with my life.”
Wickens’ surgery was assisted by one of two state-of-the-art da Vinci surgical robots at St George’s, machines which have minimised recovery times, reduced complications, cut readmission rates, and lessened post-operative pain.
Traditional surgery for coronary artery bypasses previously involved making an incision in the middle of the chest, while robotic-assisted surgery requires smaller incisions and offers greater precision.
Dr Richard Jennings, group chief medical officer for St George’s, Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals and Health Group, said: “I’m very pleased that Paul is doing so well and I am proud of the way our teams are working together every day to provide innovative, safe and up-to-date care to our patients.
“Paul is one of many patients we expect to treat with robotic-assisted surgery in the coming years, in a major step forward for our hospitals.”
The new robotic da Vinci system, part funded by Epsom and St Helier Hospitals Charity, is expected to treat around 300 patients across London and Surrey in the first year, rising to over 550 annually as more surgeons complete specialist training.
The robot will be used for a range of procedures including general surgery, colorectal cancer surgery, and gynaecological surgery as well as urology and ENT (ear, nose and throat) procedures.
Molly Simpson, head of charity and fundraising for Epsom and St Helier Hospitals Charity, said: “We’re incredibly proud to help more local people access cutting-edge surgery by part-funding the new surgical robot at Epsom Hospital.”
Featured image credit: St George’s, Epsom and St Helier Hospitals
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