By Crystal Donaldson
NORMAL – Imagine a robot performing your surgery. Surgeons at Advocate BroMenn Medical Center demonstrated how the new da Vinci Xi works, and even allowed visitors to test it out on toys.
Advocate BroMenn has offered robotic surgery since 2010 with the previous model the da Vinci Si. Todd McCartney, OR manager, says the new Xi model allows patients to recover faster.
“One of the major differences between the Si and the new Xi, that we have now, is multi-quadrant access,” McCartney said. “So, in the past we’ve had to redock the robot, so move it out and then reposition it, and then put it back into the patient. With the new robot we’re able to access multi-quadrants without having to redock.”
He also said the robot is often used for prostatectomies, hysterectomies, hernia repairs and kidney surgeries among other things.
Advocate BroMenn Medical Center is the only hospital in Bloomington-Normal with the new da Vinci Xi.
Crystal Donaldson can be reached at crystal.donaldson@cumulus.com.
