Northwestern Medicine Palos Heights Hospital is celebrating an exciting milestone for one of its surgeons.
Dr. Samer Rajjoub, a surgeon at Palos Hospital, recently celebrated his 500th robotic surgery with state-of-the-art da Vinci robots that allow surgeons to perform complex minimally invasive procedures with more precision, often leading to less pain for the patient post-surgery and quicker recovery times.
“It’s a blessing that I’ve been able to do such a high volume of cases, and I think it correlates with a certain level of proficiency that I’m thankful to have achieved. For me to provide that level of care with this technology for my patients has been great,” said Raijoub.
To use the da Vinci robots, surgeons sit at a nearby console to view 3-D images of the surgical site. Using the controls, the surgeon moves the robotic instruments. This often leads to better surgery outcomes and quicker recovery times for patients.
The hospital is currently equipped with four da Vinci robotic surgical systems.
“This allows surgeons to be more capable of completing minimally invasive surgery compared to conventional laparoscopic surgery and with less conversion to open surgery, which is also helpful in training residents,” Raijoub said.
During real-time surgeries, the robotic camera Raijoub uses magnifies the surgical field to make it 10 time larger.
“If I can see something better, I can absolutely do better,” Raijoub said. “Think about virtual reality glasses. You feel like everything is right there. And that’s how the robot is. When your head is in the console, you can see the relationship of structures much better.”
Rajjoub obtained his undergraduate degree from the Washington University in St. Louis in Biology and Economics went on to Medical School at George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences.
Today, he often uses the robot to perform surgeries for hernias, colectomies, and cholecystectomies. He says not only does the machine give him more dexterity, but it gives him a better view of the anatomy.
Some of the benefits include wristed laparoscopic instrumentation, better visualization, less postoperative pain, quicker recovery, most often decreased OR times.
“Newer robots incorporate AI (artificial intelligence) that increases safety and aid in efficiency,” Raijoub said.
Northwestern Medicine is anchored by Northwestern Memorial Hospital, nationally ranked in 11 specialties and one of only three hospitals in the nation rated high performing in all procedures and conditions by U.S. News & World Report, 2024 – 2025.