Health Management elicits and implements ideas for advancing operational, clinical and service excellence.

Innovative Technologies and Procedures Improve Quality Care

Introducing robotic surgeries to smaller communities.

At Health Management, we are committed to being at the forefront of medicine, providing our patients with the finest, most technologically advanced medical care. Our strategy of ensuring that the most modern, high-quality care is available in communities of all sizes gains increasing importance as local resources are stretched thin in this difficult economy.

For instance, in 2010, Health Management introduced 15 state-of-the-art robotic surgery systems at our facilities, and so far in 2011, we’ve added 11 more. 

The Robotic Surgery Center at Physicians Regional Healthcare System in Naples, Florida, for example, is home to some of the most sought-after physicians in the country performing the newest, most innovative techniques in surgery today. Here we recently introduced a robust robotic suite and became the first hospital in southwest Florida to introduce the da Vinci®-S™ Surgical System and the RIO® Robotic Arm Interactive Orthopedic System – the newest technology in robotic surgery.

Several surgeons at Physicians Regional have the training and expertise to perform robot-assisted surgery – one of the most exciting and promising areas in the field of minimally invasive surgery. Our physicians not only learn and practice cutting-edge medicine, but many are involved in the development of new treatments through active clinical research.

Advances in robotic technology make it ideally suited for use in a number of complex surgeries, and the new technology brings many advantages to patients, including minimal scarring, less pain and a quicker recovery than conventional methods of surgery. 

Barbara Matyas of Naples is a case in point. At a post-surgery checkup with Dr. Jay Roberts just a week after the ear, nose and throat specialist had removed a cancerous tumor on the back of her tongue, she felt very fortunate to be able to speak. She had opted for the robotic surgery rather than chemotherapy and radiation. And instead of a three-hour surgery with the traditional approach, Matyas' surgery took 20 minutes. Instead of a 10-day hospital stay, Matyas went home after four days.

She was the second patient on whom Roberts used the da Vinci robotic surgical system for easy access to throat cancer. He didn't have to make a disfiguring incision through the chin, throat and around the jawline, the traditional surgical approach.

"It is the technique. It's a giant leap forward for this particular tumor," said Dr. Roberts.

At Health Management know that every community deserves access to the newest, least invasive surgical techniques.