San Antonio medical malpractice injury lawyers are taking more inquiries from individuals injured in surgical procedures performed with surgical robots. The surgical robots can make surgery less invasive. Surgeons can operate through small holes in the patient instead of through a large incision. The robot with up to four remote-controlled arms and a sophisticated camera allows the physician to perform a variety of surgical procedures without cutting open a patient’s abdomen.
However, the surgical robots have long learning curves and some surgeons have said that it takes at least 200 surgeries to become proficient and to reduce the risks of surgical complications. Others have suggested that it takes 250-700 cases to master the robot.
One area of concern for potential patients and an area to be investigated by Texas injury lawyers is whether the physician had sufficient training in the use of the surgical robot. Some physicians have been given as little as two days training which included operating on pig and human cadavers. Obviously, as a patient you should inquire as to your physician’s experience with the surgical robot. There are many advantages to using a surgical robot if it is controlled and operated by an experienced surgeon. However, because of the long learning curve, an invasive procedure with a surgical robot should only be done by a surgeon properly experienced in the procedure.
Many have expressed concern that the surgical robots are being installed at hospitals and surgery centers as part of a marketing strategy. One of the manufacturers of a surgical robot openly markets the device to surgical centers as a way for them to increase their revenues. The price of the machines can run from approximately 1 million dollars to over 2 million dollars. With the high upfront costs many surgeons will feel pressured to use the device to justify its cost – whether they are ready to do so or not.
