The Bupa hospital’s second da Vinci system has seen benefits for patients including, less pain, faster recovery time, less chance of scarring and tissue loss and less blood loss. 

Cromwell Hospital in London has become the first hospital in the country to perform gynaecology and Hepato Pancreato Biliary (HPB) operations using a new robotic-assisted surgical system, the da Vinci Single Port (SP).

The hospital, which installed the da Vinci SP system in March this year, will also use the system for urology operations. 

The da Vinci SP system is a platform for robotic-assisted surgery designed to allow surgeons to perform procedures through a single incision or natural orifice. 

The surgeon using the surgical system sits at a console in the operating theatre, viewing live 3D images of the patient’s anatomy. Using hand and foot controls, they’re able to use the camera system and miniature instruments inside the patient’s body, allowing accurate and precise surgical manoeuvres in narrow spaces. 

“This technology will transform the way we approach complex procedures, including endometriosis and fibroid surgery, as well as hysterectomies,” said Amer Raza, consultant gynaecologist at the hospital. 

Second system

Cromwell Hospital was established in 1981 and acquired by international healthcare group Bupa in 2008. It is the hospital’s second da Vinci system, after installing the multiport da Vinci Xi system in 2021. Performing robotic-assisted surgery using the system, surgeons have seen benefits for patients including, less pain, faster recovery time, less chance of scarring and tissue loss and less blood loss. 

While other hospitals in the UK are already using the da Vinci SP for urology and head and neck procedures, Cromwell Hospital is the first to offer it to patients for gynaecology and HPB procedures.

“We are very proud to be the first hospital in the UK to perform gynaecology and HPB operations on the da Vinci SP as well as introducing it for urology surgery,” said Philip Luce, chief executive of Cromwell Hospital. 

Based in West London, the 100-bed hospital has more than 700 accredited consultants, mainly drawn from London’s teaching hospitals.