Developing a Successful Robotic Surgery Program in a Rural Hospital

The da Vinci surgical robot also is referred to as the patient cart. Instruments are attached to the working arms and advanced through trocars to the surgical site.

The manipulators duplicate the surgeon's hand motions at the surgeon console.

The da Vinci surgical system. From left to right are the surgeon console where the surgeon sits to perform the procedure (a); the patient cart, which holds the instrumentation (b); and the vision cart, which houses the camera, light source, and other ancillary equipment such as the electrosurgical unit (c).

The robotic instruments are wristed (ie, jointed) in seven degrees of freedom.