At 5:40 p.m. on August 1, a cholecystectomy was completed in the operating room at Beijing United Family Hospital, marking the hospital’s 900th procedure with the robotic da Vinci Surgical System.

The procedure was led by Surgery Department Chair Dr. Derek Anthony O’Reilly, who said that the system is amazing because, compared with laparoscopic surgery, the high-definition 3D imaging of the da Vinci system allows the physician to clearly visualize the patient’s anatomical structure and thus conduct the operation with greater precision, reducing bleeding and postoperative complications.

Since the arrival of the system in 2015, the hospital has used it in 900 urological, gastrointestinal, hepatobiliary and pancreatic, thyroid, head and neck, hernia and abdominal wall, thoracic, pediatric, and gynecological surgical procedures.

Minimally invasive surgery is better for the patient’s psychology, physiology, and life in general. The da Vinci system is a second revolution in surgery after the invention of the laparoscope. Its merits in the aspects of clinical efficacy, safety, postoperative recovery, and the surgeon’s experience are being affirmed by more and more physicians and patients.

Beijing United Family Hospital is continually adding to its roster of da Vinci-proficient surgeons, creating a world-class da Vinci surgery and academic exchange platform. We will continue to use the system to achieve more surgical innovation and enhance the quality and scope of the hospital’s use of it, in turn giving our patients even better medical care.