Wagga Wagga hospital trials new surgical training tech

Calvary Riverina Hospital in Wagga Wagga is trialling advanced telementoring equipment for virtual surgical training.

Associate Professor Nick Williams of Calvary Riverina Hospital used the equipment, with the help of Johnson & Johnson Institute, to instruct a two-day training course in bariatrics. The software platform incorporates transmission technology and AR (augmented reality), allowing for real-time instruction with no visible delay.

“Nearly one-third of the adult Australian population is classified as obese, yet less than 2% of patients who are eligible for bariatric surgery currently receive it. We have an urgent need to expand the number of surgeons and hospitals providing these life-prolonging procedures, and cannot wait until this pandemic has passed to build those skills,” Dr Williams said.

“Although telementoring isn’t new, past technologies have not been able to service the need for real-time transmission, which is crucial in surgery. Now, thanks to the technology offered through the Johnson & Johnson Institute, we can carry out highly precise procedural training, over significant distances, with a high degree of confidence.”

The system features a high-definition video transmission system, allowing surgeons in the operating theatre and surgeons watching on from a computer to interact in step-by-step instruction, with virtually no delay.

In a telementoring scenario, the instructor’s voice is heard in the operating theatre and a live video feed allows them to either handwrite their instructions onto the screen, or use augmented reality technology to overlay hand movements or images such as patient scans, that can be seen and replicated by the surgeons in theatre. Each detailed step of a live procedure is done in-sync with the instructor’s guidance.

“Enabling teaching hospitals to adopt this kind of medical technology opens up a multitude of possibilities,” said Johnson & Johnson Institute spokesperson, Jennifer Spurgeon.

“When used to its full potential, this system can boost the success rate of difficult surgeries, while reducing the burden on medical resources. More importantly, it can be expected to eliminate regional medical disparities and contribute to improved patient outcomes,” Spurgeon said.

Image caption: A remote instructor draws on the screen to guide an operating theatre nurse on equipment selection. Image courtesy Johnson & Johnson Medical.