The advancement in artificial intelligence is helping medical professionals in the operating room at New York City Health + Hospitals/Jacobi with the rollout of the Da Vinci surgical robot.

It arrived in March and has performed over 150 successful surgeries - both minimally invasive and complex procedures.  

“The robot gives me four arms that I can manipulate through a consul, which gives me greater mobility,” said John McNeils, chair of department for surgery at Jacobi Medical Center and North Central Bronx Hospital. 

The robot only operates on actions that the surgeon gives it and provides the surgeon more access to certain parts of the body and a better visual of some parts due to 3-D technology.  

While it’s new to Jacobi’s medical facility, surgical robots have been a part of medical practice since the 90s and are widely used across the New York City Health + Hospitals system.  

For McNeils, who has been performing surgeries for over two decades, working in the robotics program is a milestone in medicine.  

“What we found is robotic surgery in some cases has decreased length of stay,” said McNeils. “When you ask what drives medicine, what keeps me in the game, it’s that constant learning… the robot is a classic example of that.” 

The robot is helping Jacobi take a step forward in medical innovation, helping improve patient safety.