Barbados has the potential to become a major centre for telescopic surgery.
That is why University of the West Indies (UWI) Professor of Surgery Dr R. David Rosin is appealing for an operating theatre for laparoscopic surgery at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH).
He said it would not only attract patients from outside Barbados, but would help to boost the island’s reputation for skilled performance of surgeries.
Rosin, who also heads the Academic Surgical Unit at the QEH, used the forum of the first ever International Colorectal Cancer Conference that started here on?Tuesday to restate his call for such a facility.
Eminent specialists in bowel cancer from around the world are educating the local medical fraternity on new developments in colorectal cancer research, placing emphasis on early diagnosis, screening and advancements in new treatments.
Rosin told the Daily Nation: “We could be the centre of telescopic surgery in Barbados.
This would make a huge difference to keyhole surgery.”
But he said the main obstacle was finding the projected BDS$3 million to equip an operating room which links Barbados with the rest of the world.
Speaking earlier at the four-day meeting, Rosin said he had approached QEH director Dr Dexter James and Minister of Health Donville Inniss two years ago with the suggestion for the laparoscopic surgical unit.
James also used the opening of the conference to promote the benefits of telemedicine to the hospital.
Statistics show that cancer of the colon and rectum here was increasing “dramatically”.
The visiting surgeons, who represent “la creme de la crème” in their field, will perform live surgeries at the QEH, using minimal invasive techniques, which will be beamed to other hospitals.
James said the QEH was continuing to develop its capability in the area of laparoscopic surgery because it could potentially reduce the hospital’s estimated $185 million annual operating costs.
