A major milestone in Pakistan’s medical landscape has been achieved at PIMS, Islamabad’s biggest government hospital, where doctors successfully performed their first-ever robotic laparoscopic surgery.
The breakthrough marks the beginning of a new era of advanced, minimally invasive treatment options for patients.
PIMS officials confirmed that the first robotic operation at the hospital has been successfully completed. Using a modern robotic system, doctors removed a gland from the top of a patient’s kidney with precision and minimal pain.
Scenes from the operating theatre showed the robot conducting the complex procedure while the surgeon remained in full command through a control panel, showcasing the advanced capabilities of the new system.
New era of minimally invasive treatment
Doctors say the introduction of robotic laparoscopic surgery will significantly reduce patient pain and speed up recovery times compared to traditional open surgeries. The minimally invasive technique also enhances surgical accuracy and efficiency.
Professor Dr. Atif Inam Shami, who led the operation, explained that robotic surgery dramatically cuts down on hospital stays and recovery time.
“The patient’s pain is reduced. If treated with open surgery, they would remain in the hospital for five to six days and take a month to recover. With robotic surgery, the patient goes home on the second day and can return to driving or office work by the third or fourth day.”
Affordable innovation
According to the private company providing robots to PIMS, the Chinese-made robotic systems are cost-effective and a major upgrade for public healthcare. Previously, hospitals needed around Rs1 billion to acquire similar equipment, but the new technology has reduced costs to a few million.
Abdul Rehman, the director of the private company, said: “The cost of robotic surgery used to be $1,000 per patient, but now it goes up to a maximum of Rs200,000.”
This affordability is expected to make advanced surgeries more accessible for patients and lighten the financial burden on hospitals.
Doctors at PIMS revealed that the PC-1 for the hospital’s robotic surgery project has been pending with the government for a year. They urged authorities to release the necessary funds promptly so that robotic technology can be expanded to other departments and medical specialities.
