Training boost for colorectal unit
Our robotic-assisted surgery programme has received a funding boost to help train more surgeons in robotic colorectal surgery.
The Intuitive Foundation has committed to fund higher surgical training fellowships in robotic colorectal surgery at our Trust.
NNUH provides state-of-the-art minimally invasive cancer surgery and advanced robotic colorectal surgery to our patients with our two da Vinci robots and dedicated training console.
Robotic-assisted colorectal surgery at our Trust is provided by Mr Irshad Shaikh, Mr Ahmed El Hadi and Mr James Hernon at the Sir Thomas Browne Academic Colorectal Unit. The team have performed in excess of 200 operations in four years with good outcomes for patients and reduced length of stay.
Mr Shaikh, who is a proctor to train surgeons across the UK and Europe, said: “Our previous fellow from Switzerland had very good training in robotic colorectal surgery and now returning back to Switzerland to practice independent surgery. We are a European level case observation centre to train consultant surgeons, senior fellows and higher surgical trainees.”
“We are aiming to become a national reference centre with fellowship, proctoring and registrar training programmes and complex cancer surgery programs. We hope this will not only benefit Norfolk but also teams across the whole of the UK.”
The Intuitive Foundation was created in 2018 to promote health and advance education by making grants available for technology research, clinical research, and clinical robotics education and training.