Intuitive India, the India arm of Intuitive Surgical has recently collaborated with top  government medical institutions in India as a part of their initiative to expose next generation surgeons to robotic-assisted surgery.

Intuitive India together with AIIMS Delhi, has developed this educational programme called the Intuitive Robotic Onboarding Programme and Education (I-ROPE). Through this initiative, Intuitive aims to familiarise resident surgeons with robotic assisted surgery, its technology, clinical applications and its benefits. Currently, Intuitive is driving  this programme in renowned government medical institutions in the country, which includes the likes of AIIMS Delhi, AIIMS Bhubaneswar, Dr Ram Manohar Lohya Hospital- Delhi and Armed Forces Medical College Pune.

Commenting on this initiative, Dr SVS Deo - Professor and Head, Department of Surgical Oncology, BRA-IRCH, AIIMS, Delhi, said,"Upskilling for medical fraternity is a continuous process. While I-ROPE is not a mandatory part of the surgical course, there has been an overwhelming response from the resident surgeons who look forward to taking up such surgical advances to contribute towards better patient outcomes."

Commenting on this joint effort, Mandeep Singh Kumar, VP and General Manager, Intuitive India, said, "The execution of robotic-assisted surgery skill and education programmes is a key step towards nurturing early adopters of advanced surgical technologies. In this context, the Intutive Robotic Onboarding Programme and Education (I-ROPE) aims to support the country's surgical healthcare landscape's evolution towards producing better clinical outcomes."

As a pilot, AIIMS Delhi ran this programme in their oncology divisions. Based on the surgical students' feedback, Intuitive extended this programme to other specialities and institutions across India. Currently, more than two hundred resident surgeons are going through this programme, across institutions.

Currently, they have training centres at Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Centre- Kochi, Yenepoya Training Centre - Mangaluru, and MS Ramaiah Memorial Hospital- Bengaluru.