Adventist Hospital in Germany Performs First Robot-Assisted Surgery

By: Adventistische Pressedienst, and Adventist Review

Waldfriede Hospital, a Seventh-day Adventist health-care institution in Berlin, Germany, performed its first surgery with the da Vinci robot on February 7.

“This day marked another milestone in the hospital’s 101-year surgical history,” hospital CEO Bernd Quoss said.

The da Vinci operating system is a robot-assisted surgical system for minimally invasive operations in the urological and gynecological fields. Chief physician and medical director Roland Scherer performed the surgery, together with physician Thorsten Unglaube. Since then, three operations have been performed by the proctology department. The gynecology department began with its first operation on March 1.

The da Vinci device used at Waldfriede is currently the most modern version available. An additional console offers the surgeon the eyes and support of a second surgeon during the operation.

According to hospital officials, Waldfriede is the eighth hospital in Berlin and one of only 10 percent of all hospitals across Germany to take on this technical and forward-looking challenge.

In the future, the hospital would also enter the field of liver and pancreas surgery with the new Center for Oncological Upper Abdomen Surgery and Robotics. The new department’s chief physician is Marcus Bahra, who specializes in those surgeries and treatment of related diseases.

Hospital leaders are also considering developing the area of palliative medicine. With this in mind, the previous comfort ward of the hospital is currently being converted into a palliative ward to make the patients’ stay as comfortable as possible. The head of the new palliative care unit is physician Karola Wagner. These moves are helping Waldfriede to continue developing its oncological treatment offers, consolidating its reputation as an innovator in the Berlin hospital landscape.

About Waldfriede Hospital Health Network

Waldfriede Hospital is integrated into the hospital’s health network, which has become the most diverse medical and personal-care provider in the Steglitz-Zehlendorf district. In addition to Waldfriede Hospital, the Social Center, and the PrimaVita Health Center with its associated swimming pool, the network includes the Academy for Health and Nursing Care, the Nikolassee Private Clinic, the Waldfriede Hospital Service Company, the Desert Flower Center, the Waldfriede Senior Citizens’ Home, an outpatient day clinic and, in the future, a Medical Care Center for improved outpatient care. This also makes the Waldfriede Network one of the largest employers in the district. In 2021, the hospital is celebrating its 101st anniversary.

The original version of this story was posted by Adventistische Pressedienst and reposted on the Inter-European Division news site.