A new €5 million digital hybrid operating theatre has been officially opened at Beaumont Hospital, Dublin.
A hospital spokesperson said it allowed more complex procedures to be performed using new x-ray systems and was one of the first such theatres of its kind in Ireland or in Europe.
Mr. Seamus McHugh, Clinical Director of Surgery and Consultant Vascular Surgeon, at Beaumont Hospital, said the theatre combined a conventional theatre with real time state of the art imaging. He said it would shorten procedure times, ensure better outcomes for patients and allow for more complicated work to be carried out.
The new theatre will be used for neurosurgery and vascular surgery, but has been designed so that any type of surgery can be performed.
The theatre has audio and video conferences systems wjocj allow doctors to watch surgical procedures as they happen, all over the world.
