A Lima surgeon hits a milestone of performing 2000 robotic surgeries, and he is looking to continue to push the technology further.
Lima Memorial Health System was one of the first in the country to adopt the da Vinci Robotic Surgery Technology, and Dr. Jeremy Heffner and his team have set the standard that other hospitals across the country come to Lima to learn from. Heffner says nearly 10 years ago when they started doing robotic surgeries, colleagues and patients would ask why you are doing this, but now they are asking how. He says the robot has become the true way of doing surgeries now because the less invasive procedures put patients on the path of recovery quicker.
“At this point, it’s pretty much universally accepted that this is the future, but at that time (2013) that wasn’t so universal,” says Dr. Jeremy Heffner, Surgeon LMHS and Midwest Surgical Specialist. “It has changed dramatically to be at the forefront of that you have to take some risks, and this hospital (Lima Memorial Health System) has always been supportive and they continue to be. My team is amazing, the nursing staff, the techs I work with, my first assist, my PAs (Physician Assistants), they are fabulous. They allowed us to be very efficient and we have had really good outcomes. It's a team approach.”
Heffner says he is working with other surgeons from across the country to talk about the results they are seeing from robotic surgery and continue to move the technology further.
