In this MEDICA-tradefair.com interview, Auke Meppelink talks about the Digital O.R. by Brainlab, outlines the important aspects for users in integrated ORs and reveals the obstacles that still need to be overcome before OR systems can talk to each other.
What is the Digital O.R. by Brainlab? Where and how can this platform be used?
Auke Meppelink: Our digital surgical products are aimed at increasing efficiency and improving surgical outcomes. It takes a lot of organization - such as coordinating OR personnel, equipment or data from multiple exams - to ensure optimal treatment and care for patients. This also necessitates the use of various technologies such as CT scans, navigation systems, microscopes, and maybe even robots. Our Digital O.R. solution simplifies all operating room processes with the help of intuitive software. It guarantees that all information is centrally managed and promptly available when needed.
To do this, we work closely with physicians from all over the world. This enables us to combine medical knowledge with our expertise in hospital integration while covering the entire surgical workflow at the same time. It all begins when the nurse prepares the surgical schedule, which our software is able to directly send to the OR. Once the physician enters the OR, all screens have already been prepared and are ready - that is, all required information such as patient data, diagnostic imaging, and pre-operative planning are projected onto the preferred screens. This might sound easy but is difficult to do and involves a lot of effort. Hospitals use various archives and systems that contain the relevant information. Generally, these programs and devices do not communicate with each other, while the staff frequently has to work with up to ten different interfaces. We are able to integrate all applications, allowing the information to be instantly visible in our system. We focus on seamless integration with the existing setup and emphasize an easy and intuitive user experience.
What are the added benefits for hospital facilities?
Meppelink: One major added benefit is time savings. The information is more structured and stored centrally in one place. It is thus more quickly available when needed. What's more, our technology reduces the surgical staff's workload, as evidenced by the surgical checklist: instead of manually recording all events and then entering them into the PC after the surgery, the operating room nurse is able to immediately enter all information into the system and save it automatically.
In addition, our solution grants physicians access to comprehensive and detailed information, thus allowing them to make informed decisions during the planning and surgical stages. The clinical relevance of our applications is an important distinguishing feature of Brainlab products. Our Smart Anatomy Viewer, which physicians are able to use online both in the operating room, as well as anywhere in the hospital or at home, automatically extracts the most important information from a patient's image such as a CT or MRI scan for instance. For example, during the resection of a liver tumor, the vessels and the tumor itself are clearly visible and displayed in detail on a CT scan. This assists the physician in choosing how to perform the tumor resection without causing damage to the vessels and other critical structures. Oftentimes, this type of information is hard to discern on an unedited CT scan.