INTERESTING
Orthopedics is a specialty that requires precision and engineering to be successful. Many of the surgeries we perform will have a huge impact on peoples’ lives and small increments of measure may make a huge difference. This industry has exploded with technology and innovation to help surgeons improve the outcomes for patients.
Analogous to the pharmaceutical world, the cost of research and development for these innovations are significant which means the cost to the health care system and possibly patients could also be substantial. Simple question, how does the orthopedic surgeon decide how to proceed with a new technology and precision?
We would all like research to verify that techniques and that these new innovations will make a difference. Sometimes it would either be impossible, too costly, or too time consuming to develop the research. In that vain, we need to use our best judgement to decide whether the cost of treatment and innovation will possibly make a difference in the patient outcome and experience.
A recent innovation in the last decade that has undergone early success in Orthopedics is the use of robotics. We were first to market in our region with robotic knee surgery which has expanded to hip and other applications. This year we were the first group in the region to perform robotic assisted spine surgery. In both cases, no one questioned that robotics would provide precision. The surgeons at Ortho RI needed to decide that these techniques and technologies had enough potential impact to really make a difference. We now have ongoing data to support the use especially for knee and hip surgery. We are collecting data prospectively on the brand new spine technology.
In summary, there is a responsibility of each and every surgeon to utilize the best techniques understanding that the cost to the healthcare system is looming in the background. Innovation is essential for progress but we have to have patient outcome and experience in our minds.
