SAMC continues to set the standard in robotic surgery by performing the region’s first general surgery case with the latest da Vinci Si.

Dr. Jonathan Skinner, Southern Surgical, recently became the first in the region to use the da Vinci Si in general surgery. Dr. Skinner has been practicing in Dothan for almost 12 years and his office is on the third floor of the Doctors Building at SAMC.

He performed his first gall bladder cases with the da Vinci on Thursday, November 17. The da Vinci Si is also used in Urological and Gynecological cases.

“I appreciate the investment that Southeast Alabama Medical Center has made in the latest robotics technology available,” said Dr. Skinner. “The magnified, three-dimensional view enables me to perform precise surgery in complex procedures through small surgical incisions.”

“The da Vinci will follow any movement that your wrists or that your hands or fingers will perform and actually has more range of motion than the human hand and wrist does,” he said.

Dr. Skinner said he is committed to providing his patients with the latest surgical technology. In addition to gall bladder surgery, Dr. Skinner will also use the da Vinci Si to perform colon surgery.

The new da Vinci Si HD with a Firefly imaging unit was first introduced in the region by Southeast Alabama Medical Center this summer.

As the area’s only locally owned and not-for-profit hospital, SAMC brought the first da Vinci robotic surgical system to southeast Alabama almost six years ago. Since that time, more than 1,360 prostatectomies and hysterectomies have been performed by some of the best trained Urologists and Gynecologists in the region.

SAMC has performed more da Vinci robotic surgeries than any other hospital in the area. Patients have the most experienced and largest robotic trained surgical team in the region. The Medical Center currently has the most surgeons in the area trained on the da Vinci and that number continues to grow. Intuitive, which makes the da Vinci, was so impressed with SAMC’s surgical staff it designated SAMC as the observation site to train surgical teams from other hospitals in the Tri-State region.

SAMC’s upgrade to da Vinci Si includes 3D HD visualization (featuring the Firefly imaging unit), enhanced user interface and ergonomics, and a broader range of motion for the surgeon. The da Vinci Si HD is also much more compact than its predecessor, requiring less floor space. A single control cable with included fiber-optics replaces five large control cables required for the standard da Vinci.

The da Vinci Si HD Surgical System is powered by state-of-the-art robotic technology. The system allows a surgeon’s hand movements to be scaled, filtered and translated into precise movements of micro-instruments within the operative site. The system cannot be programmed nor can it make decisions on its own. The da Vinci Si HD system requires that every surgical maneuver be performed with direct input from the surgeon.

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