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. 2024 Jun 8;18(1):246.
doi: 10.1007/s11701-024-01994-8.

Robots down-under: the current climate of robotic-assisted surgery education in Australia

Aditya Sakalkale #  1   2 , Shriranshini Satheakeerthy  3   4 , Justin M C Yeung  5   4 , Fiona Reid  3   4
Affiliations

Robots down-under: the current climate of robotic-assisted surgery education in Australia

Aditya Sakalkale et al. J Robot Surg. .

Abstract

Australia has seen a significant rise in the use of Robotic-Assisted Surgery (RAS), with general surgery being the fastest-growing field in this technology. The proportion of general surgical RAS has grown from 1% to 17% of all RAS between 2008 and 2023 in Australasia. As of May 2023, there were 162 robotic platforms in Australasia, with 26 of them in the public sector. As the cost of establishing RAS decreases over time, public hospital robotics systems are expected to become more accessible. Despite the increasing demand, many specialties, including general surgery, do not have an agreed RAS curriculum for trainees. It is imperative for Australia to develop its own curriculum akin to our overseas colleagues to match this growth.

Keywords: Australia; Education; Surgical Education and Training; Robotic Assisted Surgery.

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Conflict of interest statement

Dr. Aditya Sakalkale and Dr. Shriranshini Satheakeerthy are non-SET trainee registrars within the Department of General Surgery, Western Health at the time of writing this paper. All authors of this paper confirm that no financial ties or agreements exist with the companies and systems listed in this paper that may create a conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Robotic education programme: a proposed curriculum framework. The Avian Model/VR model to be used to consolidate ‘Foundations of Robotic Surgery’ assessable skills; “knot tying, continuous suturing, cutting, dissection, and vessel coagulation” * Acceptable levels are determined by specialists either at the hospital network level or by the overseeing training board
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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