New resource room at the Churchill Hospital now open

The operating theatres at the Churchill Hospital now have a new room dedicated to staff education and training that will support surgical trainees, surgeons, and allied theatre staff.

The room features innovative equipment to assist with training theatre staff, including a new live surgery viewing screen along with a VR robotic surgery simulator, a da Vinci 'backpack' Skills Simulator with the two latest da Vinci robots, and laparoscopic skills trainers. 

The various equipment are contributions from several charities along with the Trust resources including Oxford urological cancer charity UCARE (Urology Cancer Research and Education), Oxford Hospitals Charity's OPAL (Oxford Pancreatic and Liver Fund, Oxford Hospitals Charity), and the Oxford-based colorectal charity, Occtopus (Oxford Colon Cancer Trust).

Live surgery screen

 The new live surgery viewing screen was kindly funded by Oxford-based charity Occtopus, dedicated to advancing colorectal disease research and treatment, and was recently handed over by Professor Sir Neil Mortensen, Chair at Occtopus. 

Designed to bridge the gap between theoretical learning and practical application, the screen will further enhance training and education for future surgeons. 

The screen livestreams surgeries to clinical and nursing staff, allowing them to observe complex procedures in real-time.

The livestream will feature a range of surgical procedures, showcasing the latest techniques and innovations in the field. Senior surgeons will provide real-time commentary, explaining each step of the procedure and answering questions from the observing clinicians. 

Surgery simulators 

There are several surgery simulators in the room: the Flex-VR robotic surgery simulator funded by UCARE, and a da Vinci backpack Skills Simulator historically funded by Oxford Hospitals Charity, with two latest da Vinci robots funded by the Trust, and several laparoscopic skills trainers funded by the OPAL fund.

The Flex-VR is a flexible and portable training platform designed to teach basic and advanced skills for robotic surgery, including the fundamental such as camera control, clutching, energy control, needle driving, and suturing.

The da Vinci Skills Simulator contains a variety of exercises and scenarios specifically designed to give users the opportunity to improve their proficiency.

The laparoscopic skills trainers are regularly used for student and junior doctor courses.

Lian Lee, Deputy Matron for theatres at the Churchill, said: "We are thrilled to have a dedicated space for the training and educating of our theatre staff. 

"We are grateful to everyone involved for their continued support to our staff's education – training the next generation of surgeons and supporting our clinical staff are top priorities for us."

Mike Silva, Consultant Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgeon at OUH and trustee for OPAL, said: "The addition of the new state of the art ‘touch screen’ monitor has enhanced the audio-visual capability of teaching and training within the theatre suite, and will help bridge the gap between being in the operating room and classroom with live streaming."

Associate Professor Alastair Lamb, Consultant Urologist at OUH and trustee for UCARE, said: "We now have a great space for an excellent collection of systems for keyhole (laparoscopy) surgical training, as well as the new screen for viewing, recording, reviewing, and sharing surgery for research. 

"These will help us to attract excellent trainees from around the world to enable us to continue to provide excellent surgical care for our patients."

Professor Sir Neil Mortensen, Chair at Occtopus said: "We are thrilled to support Oxford University Hospitals with this state-of-the-art technology. 

"By livestreaming surgeries, we can provide clinicians with unparalleled access to expert surgical practices, enhancing their learning and ultimately improving patient outcomes in the field of colorectal surgery."