Purchasing an Advanced Surgical Robotic System
Galilee Medical Center seeks $3 million to purchase

a Da Vinci Xi surgical robotic system in order to modernize and

upgrade its medical and surgical care and treatments.
Background

The Galilee Medical Center (GMC) is committed to providing the best possible care to its

patients, most of whom are part of Israel’s geographic and economic periphery. As such,

the hospital is in the process of upgrading its outdated facilities and services, with the goal

of matching the level of health care available in the country’s Central region.

Despite the fact that hundreds of surgical procedures are performed at the GMC every

month, the hospital is one of the few in Israel that only performs only traditional manual

operations and does not offer robotic-assisted surgery – a technology that is prevalent in

hospitals around the world and allows surgeons to operate much more precisely and with

far superior results.

Galilee Medical Center seeks $3 million to purchase

a Da Vinci Xi surgical robotic system in order to modernize and

upgrade its medical and surgical care and treatments.

Purchasing an Advanced

Surgical Robotic System

The Da Vinci Xi surgical robotic system

The Da Vinci surgical system was developed 20 years ago, giving surgeons a cutting-edge

set of instruments to use in performing minimally invasive robotic-assisted surgery. The

newest model, the Da Vinci Xi, is a state-of-the-art system that includes modular features

making it possible to integrate the most advanced and innovative technologies, such as

single port laparoscopic surgeries, intraoperative neuromonitoring, and advanced viewing

systems.

The Da Vinci surgical system includes a surgeon console and surgery unit, visualization

systems and wrist-controlled endoscopic instruments – all of which are entirely controlled

by surgeons. The system translates the surgeon’s hand movements at the console in real

time, bending and rotating the instruments while performing the procedure, and essentially

mimicking the motions of the human hand while eliminating natural hand tremors and

significantly enhancing precision and control. In fact, the tiny wrist-controlled instruments

have a greater range of motion than the human hand. The surgeon also benefits from the

system’s highly magnified, high-definition 3D images, which provide the clearest possible

view of the surgical site.

As a result of these super-human features, surgeons can operate in a much more precise

manner and the risk of mishaps is greatly reduced. Another important benefit is that

robotic-assisted operations only require one or a few small incisions, rather than the large

scalpel cuts common in traditional techniques. In addition to the superior outcomes of the

surgery, patients enjoy a much faster post-operative recovery time.

Wide range of applications

The Da Vinci surgical system is suitable for a very wide range of different surgical

procedures. It is especially valuable for oncological operations, which require fine and

precise manipulations in order to minimize potential collateral damage. In fact, it takes

cancer treatment to a completely new level since a tumor’s boundaries can be determined

much more precisely and clean margins can be assured. This is especially important when

removing internal tumors that are difficult to identify with a regular camera; the doctors

are able to successfully remove the tumor without leaving behind cancerous cells – thereby

significantly minimizing the risk of recurrence. The technology’s precision also reduces the

risk of unnecessary damage to healthy tissue surrounding the tumor.

Other fields where the Da Vinci robotic system is commonly used include:

• Urology – for example prostatectomies and removing tumors from the bladder or

kidneys

• Cardiology – inserting a pacemaker, coronary artery bypass surgery, mitral valve

repair, etc.

• Gynecology – removing fibroids, hysterectomies, etc.
• Gastroenterology – removing tumors in the digestive tract, and other procedures
• Neurology
• Eye surgery

Implementation at GMC

Dr. David Kakiashvili, director of the GMC’s Urology Department, heads the hospital’s

robotics project. He is one of very few urologic surgeons in Israel who has been trained in

both urologic oncology and robotic surgery. Dr. Kakiashvili will lead the implementation of

robotic-assisted surgery at Galilee Medical Center, and other surgeons will also undergo

training once the system is purchased.

The hospital plans to train surgeons in many fields to maximize the system’s benefit and

significantly improve the quality of health care in the Galilee.

About Galilee Medical Center

Galilee Medical Center (GMC) is a government-owned general hospital that was established

shortly after the founding of the State of Israel in Nahariya in the Western Galilee. Today

it is the sole medical center in the region, serving a diverse population of 600,000 Jews,

Moslems, Christians and Druze – civilians and soldiers.

GMC’s strategic location, a mere six miles from the hostile Lebanese border, requires it

to maintain the highest standards of preparedness in case of emergency situations. The

hospital must always be ready to provide advanced treatment for multiple casualty events

involving both civilian and military populations. During the Second Lebanon War of 2006,

the Medical Center suffered a direct hit from a missile, and numerous lives were saved

thanks to the fact that the hospital had transferred its activities to its fortified underground

facilities, the first and only one of its kind in Israel at that time.

Galilee Medical Center received international acknowledgment for its professional and

humane treatment of 3,000 wounded Syrians – 70% of all the victims who were brought to

Israel in order to receive humanitarian aid during the bloody civil war in Syria.

In recent years, GMC has undergone an unprecedented overhaul: dozens of new departments

and new medical services were inaugurated, some in fields that were previously unavailable

to residents of the periphery. These include the new neurosurgery department; the cerebral

angiography unit; head surgery; oral and maxillofacial specialists, and others.

In addition to being the largest surgical center in the Galilee, GMC is the principal teaching

hospital for the Bar-Ilan University Faculty of Medicine in the Galilee, training approximately

two-thirds of its medical students.

For more information, contact

Talia Zaks, Director of Donor Relations, Friends of Galilee Medical Center,

Tel. +972-53-4222310 | [email protected]

Cost

The cost of a state-of-the-art Da Vinci Xi surgical robotic system is $ 3 million.

Galilee Medical Center is seeking $3 million in funding in order to cover the cost of purchasing

a state-of-the-art Da Vinci Xi surgical robotic system.