SURGERY CONSULTATION
New technology always has advantages and disadvantages. Early adoption is tough on surgeons trying to implement new techniques into practice. We want to use new technology safely, so that patients can see the benefits without additional side effects. This requires surgeons to change their routines and their practices which can be very uncomfortable. However, discomfort is the necessary side effect of progress and is something that surgeons need to embrace so that we can bring the best options to our patients. At Ortho Rhode Island, we believe in taking on new surgical techniques and offering the latest technology to our patients. The discomfort is something that we have embraced because we have been doing it for years.
Remember the last time you tried something new. Maybe it was a new sport. Possibly you went back to school to study for a new career. Some others may have been assigned new responsibilities within their job that they had never done before. It is normal to feel hesitant and nervous. As human beings, we are creatures of habit and rely on our instincts and trained behaviors to get through most of our days. If we had to think about every single decision, life would be exhausting, and we would not even make it out of the morning. These feelings can be overcome by preparation and practice. When we try a new sport, we prepare by learning about the sport or even talking to others that have been doing it for a while to get pointers. Whether we are going back to school for a new career or taking on new responsibilities at work, we will often build networks of people that can help guide us through the transition. The same is true for surgeons taking on new techniques and practice.
This is something that I have become familiar with throughout my practice and again experienced as I ventured into the world of robotic surgery. Routine cases required much greater preparation than before. I was disrupting my normal routines that had become rote up until then. I still wanted my patients to get a superior outcome but knew that with a different routine, this would take some extra work on my part. I took the time to travel to courses and engage in learning platforms where other surgeons who had gone before me could impart their wisdom and their experience. I see this as an investment in my practice and in my patients.
You can often find the surgeons at Ortho Rhode Island traveling for coursework and lab work to perfect their technique prior to implementing it for their patients. We build networks of surgeons around ourselves from around the country who can help us transition to new techniques. Furthermore, we often serve as mentors for others looking to take on new technology as we are considered leaders in this realm of orthopedics. It is one thing for surgeons to advertise a new technique on a television commercial; it is quite another to have an organization like Ortho Rhode Island where we manage our entire practice around continuous learning to benefit our patients.
