He warns that to work with the Da Vinci Xi robot, which cost 2,100,000 euros, every surgeon must go to an authorized center for an examination and obtain a training certificate.
The illustrious Faculty of Physicians of Melilla (ICOMME) accused the Institute of Health Administration (INGESA) of starting a “roof house” to purchase the Da Vinci Xi robotic surgery system, intended for the University Hospital of Melilla, to perform minimally invasive surgeries by integrating computer-assisted surgery equipment, without accompanying this important investment With a plan to strengthen or attract doctors who can use it. ICOMME warned that to work with this robot, each surgeon must perform specific simulated exercises, visit centers of excellence, go to an authorized center to take an exam and obtain a training certificate.
The Foundation representing the doctors of Melilla recalled that a few days ago we learned of the purchase of a Da Vinci Xi robot for the new hospital in Melilla, for 2,100,000 euros, by order of the Director of INGESA, Belén Hernando.
For ICOMME, “In principle, providing a robot for computer-assisted minimally invasive surgery is a great progress for our city. Of course, he added, the large investment being made in the equipment of the new hospital is amazing, not because it is unnecessary, but because it is not at all combined with a plan to strengthen Or attract doctors who can use it.”
In this regard, he notes that less than six months ago, the leading La Fe hospital in Valencia installed the same equipment, and announced that they hope to apply it to up to 500 surgeries annually. The school confirmed that this hospital “has a health area nearly four times the size of Melilla, in addition to various services that do not even exist in our city, such as thoracic surgery, blood vessels or maxillofacial surgery.” These numbers can be reached “once you overcome the learning curve with this system,” they noted in La Fe. They have created a robotic surgery training program for all professionals involved in using this new technology (doctors from urology, gynecology, general surgery, anesthesiology, nursing and sterilization services). He continued that each surgeon must perform specific simulation exercises, visit centers of excellence, and go to an accredited center to take an exam and obtain a training certificate.
In this regard, they confirmed from ICOMME that “as you can imagine, none of the above is in progress in the Melilla case. And if it is done now, it will already be too late. However, Ingesa’s regional director, Omar El Houari, told the media that he is with With this acquisition, it is possible to increase the range of services in the health sector, but we ask ourselves: With what employees does this portfolio aim to develop?
In this sense, they explained that the Da Vinci Xi robot also requires the signing of an annual maintenance contract, with a budget of about 200,000 euros per year, if we adhere to what is published on the government contracting platform. “It’s a great business in the short term, since it will be of minimal use,” he noted.
For the College of Physicians, “the enormous expense of equipment is not accompanied by an adequate supply of medical staff. The service that could benefit the most from the aforementioned robot is urology, which is on the schedule (two doctors and one over 65 years old). Moreover, we have 5 Only anesthesiologists, and 3 over the age of 55.” They also warned that “doctors will not come to our city for equipment, as long as working conditions do not improve and they can develop professionally.” Because of this, he denounced that “a few months after the opening of the hospital, the uncertainty reached its highest point.”
ICOMME confirmed that the National Institute of Statistics (with data from 2021) has already placed us at the bottom of the rate of doctors per inhabitant in Spain and, according to the Ministry of Health, we are last in hospital medical care. He warned that “years without responding to the demands of doctors have brought us to this situation, and they condemn Melilla to public health without a future if INGESA does not act now”.
In conclusion, they believe, “Da Vinci’s robot arrives doomed to ostracism and those responsible for it continue in office.”