Considering robotics? Plan for a program, not just procedures.

marketing, as competing hospitals purchase robots and advertise them to consumers eager for the latest technology. “It’s definitely a consumer-driven health care offering,” says Lynda Petty, RN, director of perioperative education, policy, and process improvement at The Ohio State University (OSU) Medical Center in Columbus. OSU was the first hospital to use the da Vinci robot, manufactured by Intuitive Surgical, which remains the only surgical robot brand on the market. For teaching and academic hospitals like OSU, robotic surgery is almost a requirement, despite lingering questions about its cost and effectiveness compared to standard surgery. For other hospitals, it can be a way to prevent a high-volume surgeon from taking business elsewhere or to recruit surgeons who expect a robot in a hospital’s arsenal. Whatever your reasons for starting a robotics program, experts say to do your homework if you want to create a thriving program instead of having a robot that gathers dust.