Chelsea and Westminster Hospital leads on pioneering gynaecology super-surgery weekend

This weekend, surgeons at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital successfully operated on a record number of women living with the debilitating disease endometriosis, a condition that affects 1 in 10 women.

Specialists at the trust performed a staggering 24 surgical procedures in a single weekend supported by a team of more than 20 members of staff. 23 of the 24 patients were able to go home within 24 hours after surgery, 

Such high intensity procedures are rarely performed in gynaecology theatres in the UK, marking a landmark moment for this London Hospital. It has taken meticulous planning on behalf of staff at the trust who normally perform three major endometriosis procedures per week.

The hospital is using High Intensity Theatre (HIT) lists which focus on one procedure at a time and deploys the latest robotic innovation. The high number of surgical procedures is also made possible by deploying newly developed, more efficient processes, including a new theatre scheduling software provided via our Care Coordination Solution.

Jeffrey Ahmed, Consultant Gynaecologist at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, said: “1 in 10 women in the UK are affected by endometriosis, which often leads to years of suffering and late diagnosis. Thanks to the dedication of our staff working additional hours, combined with the latest robotic procedures, we were able to help dozens of women in North West London this weekend alone.”

David Marante, Regional Director of Intuitive UK & Ireland who supplied the robotic system, said: “We’re delighted that this innovative way of working from the gynaecology team at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust has enabled more patients to receive minimally invasive surgical procedures with da Vinci technology over the last seven days. 

“These efforts have shown that the use of our technology can not only enable surgeons and care teams to deliver improved patient outcomes, but also improve theatre productivity and efficiency so that more patients can be treated. We look forward to continuing our work with the NHS to advance minimally invasive care with robotic-assisted surgical procedures.”