Today, The Princess Royal visited Musgrove Park Hospital to meet volunteers of the Musgrove Park League of Friends, which funded the hospital’s first surgery robot.
The hospital’s League of Friends and donated £1.5 million to buy the da Vinci Xi robot, which surgeons have used to operate on over 200 people in its first year.
During her visit, The Princess Royal visited the hospital’s League of Friends shop, met volunteers who raise money for the League of Friends and trust colleagues who use the robot, as well as seeing first-hand the difference it makes for patients.
Clinton Rogers, president of the League of Friends, said:
“We organised this visit essentially to say thank you to all our volunteers. They are the heart of the League of Friends – without them we wouldn’t exist.
It was wonderful to be able to give so many of our volunteers the chance to meet The Princess Royal. She was very warm and genuinely interested in what they had to say.
We were also keen for The Princess Royal to see the robotic surgery console. At £1.5 million, it was the single biggest purchase in the history of the League of Friends.”
Liz Kingston, a volunteer at the League of Friends, said:
“It was so exciting to meet The Princess Royal and she took a real interest in how our ‘Friends shop is entirely run by volunteers.
We also told her how the mothers of both me and my fellow volunteer Margaret Lomax were the first to set up a trolley service at the hospital 60 years ago…and they met The Princess Royal then too!”
During the visit, upper GI surgeon Mr David Mahon, described the incredible benefits that robotic surgery is having on patient care across Somerset.
Surgeons are now able to perform more intricate and less invasive surgery, across a variety of different disciplines within the hospital.
Mr Richard Bamford, a colorectal consultant surgeon at the hospital, said it was fitting that The Princess Royal was able find out all about the robot for herself, and alsoto hear about the incredible efforts made by the League of Friends to make it happen.
“It was fantastic to show Her Royal Highness our latest state-of-the-art robotic surgery operating system,” said Richard.
“We’re eternally grateful to the League of Friends and its supporters for the passion they showed in helping to bring this technology to our hospital.
Our team of surgeons are operating on as many patients as we can with the robot, and we have a really excellent and dedicated theatre team, led by senior nurse Noemi Eccles.
From a patient’s point of view, it’s making a huge difference as they’re able to go home much quicker and are experiencing less pain.
And for our surgeons, while it can of course be mentally tiring, it doesn’t have the same physical demand as we aren’t stood up straight, so it’s much more comfortable, and means we can operate for longer, both during the day and also in our careers.
The term ‘robotic’ often misleads people, as robots don’t actually perform any type of surgery of course – it’s the surgeon still does that using instruments that they guide via a console.
The system translates the surgeon’s hand movements at the console in real time, bending and rotating the instruments while performing the procedure. The tiny instruments move like a human hand, but with a greater range of motion.
Everyone in the NHS works hard to improve their area and sometimes it’s so nice to know that it’s been seen by others and recognised.”