iPod docks and flat screen monitors at hi-tech £500,000 Edinburgh Royal Infirmary facility

Published on Thursday 19 November 2009 09:14

WITH its wall-mounted, high-definition flat screens, iPod dock and cool blue and green lighting, it has all the elements of a modern living room in an upmarket home, but in fact it's one of the most advanced operating theatres in Europe.

The groundbreaking 500,000 keyhole surgery theatre at the ERI was unveiled today, boasting a string of features aimed at revolutionising patient care and medical training.

Among them are the integrated iPod dock with controls that can be tweaked from the operating table, allowing surgeons to perform their delicate surgery to the calming sounds of their favourite playlist.

The new theatre is for advanced laparoscopic and endoscopic surgery in which surgeons operate through a series of tiny incisions and use a camera to beam images on to monitors around the operating table.

Gall bladder, hernia and some cancer operations are typically carried out using the technique. Patients benefit because recovery times are typically quicker than traditional surgery.

The new facility means surgeons will have a crystal-clear view of their keyhole surgery on high-definition built-in monitors similar to modern television sets found in many homes.

The theatre also has hi-tech green and blue lighting units which ensure theatre staff are constantly bathed in special light which eliminates the risk of shadows falling across the operating table.

While surgeons work, live images from inside the theatre can be beamed to up to 250 students at a time in the lecture theatre a floor below, and video conferencing facilities means operations can also be transmitted live around the world.

It is hoped the new technology – the result of a joint initiative with medical technology specialists Olympus Keymed – will enable surgeons to perform more keyhole operations and improve the outcomes for patients.

Leading NHS consultant surgeon Simon Paterson-Brown, who helped create the theatre, said: "Before this, we would be operating using pictures similar to those most people have on television at home, but when you are doing very advanced keyhole surgery, the better you can see, the better the outcome for patient."

While the iPod dock might sound like a trivial addition, he insists it is vital to help staff relax during tense operations.

Around 1,200 keyhole gall bladder procedures and 1,000 hernia operations are carried out every year in Lothian, most of them using the keyhole technique. In addition, surgeons use the procedure for antireflux surgery and appendix removal.

Some emergency operations are also performed using keyhole procedures.

As well as helping speed up operations, the new theatre will improve surgeons' skills, opening up the potential to eventually use keyhole surgery to remove kidneys from live donors and remove sections of liver and pancreas from others.

The new theatre's state-of-the-art facilities puts the hospital on the map as the European Reference Centre for advanced laparoscopic procedures.

The facility is due to be officially opened today by Sir David Carter, former Chief Medical Officer for Scotland.