Hackensack University Medical Center Takes the Lead Educating Surgeons on Single Port Robotic Surgery Technology
What You Need to Know
Hackensack University Medical Center’s Department of Urology experts hosted a national Single Port Symposium for urology residents and fellows on September 17-18, 2022, at Hekemian Auditorium on the Hackensack University Medical Center campus.
The weekend-long symposium gave residents and fellows from across the U.S. - traveling from institutions including Stanford, Yale, University of California (UC)-Irvine, Cornell, UC-San Francisco, Baylor, NYU and more - an opportunity to learn from some of the world’s most experienced single port urologic surgeons. The symposium was made possible by a grant from the Endourology Society and the department’s Urology Education Fund.
The symposium included expert didactic lectures and the opportunity to observe three live surgeries - a kidney, prostate and reconstruction procedure - performed using the da Vinci SP Single Port Robotic Surgical System. The da Vinci SP allows urologic surgeons to perform complex urological procedures through a single half-inch incision. All participants had access to the single port system and participated in hands-on training using hydrogel simulation models.
About the Symposium
The symposium was hosted by Hackensack University Medical Center Department of Urology faculty members, including:
- Michael D. Stifelman, M.D., department chair of Urology, Hackensack University Medical Center, director of Robotic Surgery at Hackensack Meridian Health, and professor and chair of Urology, Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine;
- Mutahar Ahmed, M.D., director of the Center for Bladder Cancer, Hackensack University Medical Center, associate professor of Urology, Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine, and director, Robotic Fellowship Program, New Jersey Urology;
- Mubashir Shabil Billah, M.D., attending, Hackensack University Medical Center.
Invited faculty included:
- Ketan Badani, M.D., director, Comprehensive Kidney Cancer Center and Reconstructive Urology and vice-chairman of Urology & Director of Robotic Operations at Mount Sinai Health System, and professor of Urology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital;
- Sammy Elsamra, M.D., associate professor of Surgery (Urology) and chief, Section of General Urology, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School;
- Michael A. Palese, M.D., chairman, Sol and Margaret Berger Department of Urology at Mount Sinai Downtown/Mount Sinai Beth Israel and professor of Urology at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.