Samaritan to demonstrate new surgical robot Monday
Samaritan Healthcare surgeon Jordan Smith, background center, operates the hospital’s da Vinci surgical robot during a procedure. Surgeons began using the robot in November 2023.
FILE PHOTO
MOSES LAKE — People who are curious about the new surgical robot put into service in November at Samaritan Hospital can see it for themselves during a demonstration at 5:30 p.m. Monday in the 4-H building at the Grant County Fairgrounds, 3593 Airway Drive NE.
The da Vinci robot at the demo will not, of course, be the robot actually used in the hospital’s surgical department. Gretchen Youngren, Samaritan development and communications director, said the manufacturer has a demonstration model that allows people to see and use the technology.
The robot also will be on display at the Moses Lake Chamber of Commerce Business Expo on Tuesday at the fairgrounds.
The robot cost about $4 million, some of which, Youngren said, was paid with a federal grant.
The robot helps shorten the stay of hospital patients and lowers the risk of infection, said Andrea Matson, general surgeon at Samaritan.