Sustainability of Surgical Robotics
Introduction
Robotics and Automation (R&A) offer a wide range of tools to enable enhance modern surgery. Sustainability of such a rapidly growing area – in the sense of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – is rarely addressed. While R&A technologies could improve access to care and improve the patient outcomes, therefore improve the quality of life of people, R&A could also present itself as an inhibitor to sustainability. The aim of the proposed special co-creation workshop is to support the achievement of and awareness regarding the SDGs within the surgical robotics community, by determining the priorities to help the Medical R&A Community in achieving the SDGs and improve their attitude towards ESG.
A participatory activity “co-creation workshop” will be organised in the second half of the workshop. The attendees will be invited to join deliberation tables and hold facilitated discussions about the priorities to help surgical roboticists work towards sustainability. Note that the organisers have first-hand experience in organising such activities.
This workshop will be the opportunity to foster discussions and contribute together on research about the impacts of our work as surgical roboticists in a societal context. The deliberation activity will be held both in person and online, to allow the participation of medical experts of roboticists who could not come, could not afford to attend the symposium, or did not want to travel for sustainability reasons.
Programme
| 08:30 | Registration & Coffee | |
| 09:05 | The importance of sustainability in the medical domain | An Jacobs (Professor, Vrije Universiteit Brussel) |
| 09:25 | Sustainability for a global company | Ed Yeh (Senior manager, Intuitive Surgical) Recorded |
| 09:45 | Metrics for sustainability | Julie Legrand (S. Researcher, Vrije Universiteit Brussel) Online |
| 10:00 | The EU's Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive in Robotic Surgery | Kristóf Takács (S. Researcher, Óbuda University) |
| 10:15 | The business rational of surgical robotics and sustainability | Tamás Haidegger (Professor, Óbuda University) |
| 10:30 | Coffee Break | |
| 11:00 | Co-creation workshop methos introduction | An Jacobs, Tamas Haidegger, Kristóf Takács |
| 11:15 | First split workshop session along key sustainability questions | Facilitated by the orgnaizers |
| 09:00 | Opening: Welcome & Introduction | Tamas Haidegger (Óbuda University) and An Jacobs (Vrije Universiteit Brussel) |
| 11:50 | First split workshop session along key sustainability questions | Facilitated by the orgnaizers |
| 12:25 | Closing Remarks | Tamas Haidegger (Óbuda University) and An Jacobs (Vrije Universiteit Brussel) |
| 12:30 | Lunch Break | |
Learning Outcomes
Attendees will:
- Learn about the current prospects of the UN SDGs, especially SDG 3 Good Health and Well Being.
- Get engaged on the topic, to allow them to connect, and to produce interesting content from their collective experience and knowledge.
- Identify priorities both for research and clinical application in the key aspects of sustainability
Organisers
Dr. Tamas Haidegger, Obuda University
Dr. An Jacob, Vrije Universiteit Brussel
Mr Vincent Mai, University of Montreal
Dr. Bram Vanderborght, Brubotics, Vrije Universiteit Brussel and imec
HALF DAY WORKSHOP – AM
This workshop is accredited for 3 CPD points.
