Pictured at the launch of the Versius robotic surgery system launched at St John’s Hospital Limerick were Barry Kelly, Miltown Malbay, County Clare, the first patient operated on with the new system; Sue Ann Foley, JP McManus Pro-Am; and Prof Christina Fleming, Consultant General and Colorectal Surgeon. St John’s is now the first model 2 hospital in Ireland offering robotic-assisted procedures to public patients and the first hospital in Ireland to launch the Versius platform. Made possible through a €2.5 million donation from the JP McManus Pro-Am 2022, this initiative will mean reduced pain, shorter hospital stays and faster recovery times for patients across the Mid West. Photograph: Brian Arthur
A PROMINENT Miltown Malbay man became the first patient to undergo a new robotic assisted surgery programme at St John’s Hospital.
Barry Kelly, a well-known gaelic football referee from Miltown Malbay on January 28th became patient to undergo a robotic-assisted procedure at St John’s Hospital when consultant colorectal and general surgeon Prof Christina Fleming carried out a robotic inguinal hernia repair.
St John’s is now the first model two hospital in Ireland to offer robotic-assisted procedures to public patients. The programme was made possible through the activities of the Mid-Western Hospitals Development Trust and the financial support of the JP McManus Pro-Am 2022.
Twelve cases have had procedures to date with the first successfully completed in January. The hospital has initially focused on general surgery and colorectal patients and with plans in place to shortly expand to gynaecology and urology patients.
St John’s is also the first hospital in Ireland to use CMR Surgical’s Versius system. Designed to enhance surgeons’ capabilities by mimicking the human arm, Versius features fully wristed instruments that provide surgeons and surgical teams the freedom to perform complex procedures. Its compact, modular design makes it portable between operating rooms and flexible to set up. By enabling more procedures to be performed via keyhole surgery, Versius should enable a number of benefits including reduced pain, shorter hospital stays, and faster recovery times.
On top of his role as a referee, Barry also manages deliveries at Aldi’s store in Ennistymon which meant a shorter recovery time was a key consideration in his decision making. He recalled, “When I first met Christina, she explained to me the various options we had for surgery and ran me through the risks and complications. She recommended the robot as possibly the best way forward and I said: ‘We might as well have a go’. But once she said I would be the first one done in St John’s, I said ‘we’ll definitely have a go so’. The Clare lads like to get in first”.
Barry continued, “This is the world we are living in now with robotics and technology. It’s the way forward. The main benefit for me was I was out quicker. I was actually home on the same day. That’s how good it is. Another big plus for me was that meant a bed was freed up for someone else. When you think of hospitals, you think of overcrowding and elderly people who are waiting for a bed. But I was on my way home at 6pm and I wasn’t taking up a bed when there are plenty who need it more than me”.
Miltown Malbay’s Kellys are one of Clare’s great sporting families and one of the toughest you will find. Barry’s brothers Gordon and Graham both represented the Clare senior footballers, Gordon was previously described by David Clifford as the toughest opponent he faced. Their sister Diane who now resides in Wexford is also a former Clare ladies football star who lined out on All-Ireland final day. His niece, Abi is an Ireland U-18 rugby international representing her country in the Six Nations and also a promising ladies footballer.
Within three weeks of surgery, Barry was back on the sideline as a linesman and back refereeing within six weeks.
Patients such as Barry are seeing these considerable benefits thanks to the generosity of the JP McManus Pro-Am, who have supported the institution of this cutting edge programme at Limerick’s oldest operating acute hospital site, having also generously supported the earlier robotic surgery programme at University Hospital Limerick in 2016.
Declan Madden, Chairperson of the Mid-Western Hospitals Development Trust, said: “The donation of the overall robotic programme was made possible, by the generous support from the JP McManus Pro-Am 2022. The Mid-Western Hospitals Development Trust acknowledges and thanks the JP McManus Pro-Am 2022 and the McManus family for their continued, invaluable support it provides to the region’s hospitals for the benefit of patients. This is an exciting time for St John’s Hospital. The introduction of the Versius surgical robotic system will provide patients of the Mid West region with optimal surgical treatment. This state-of-the art technology is an essential part of the infrastructure required in a modern hospital setting”.
Robotic surgery in Ireland has to date largely been the domain of private healthcare and large teaching hospitals such as UHL. With the advent of the Versius system in Limerick, St John’s Hospital reaffirms its status as a centre for innovation in delivering intermediate, elective and day surgery and the wider Mid-West becomes a more attractive region for surgeons in which to work and train.
Emer Martin, Chief Executive Officer, St John’s Hospital, said: “We’re delighted to be the first hospital in Ireland to introduce the Versius system. The first operations with the new robot were completed on January 28th. From the clinicians to the various healthcare partners involved, everyone has been very supportive of this initiative. It has been very beneficial for our surgical team, collaborating with colleagues in the Mid West health region to deliver on this great project together. We are very grateful to Mr JP McManus and the Mid-Western Hospitals Development Trust for their generous support, without whom this wouldn’t have happened”.
Prof J Calvin Coffey, Foundation Chair of Surgery at the University of Limerick School of Medicine and general and colorectal surgeon, has pioneered the delivery of robotic-assisted surgery for patients in the Mid-West since 2016. “Until now, robotic surgery has largely been reserved for long, complex procedures in major university hospitals. However, the majority of operations are shorter and less complex. The introduction of Versius changes that. It brings the benefits of robotic precision—smaller incisions, faster recovery, earlier discharge—to a much broader group of patients. In practical terms, it means more people can return to their families and normal lives sooner,” he commented.
