Surgeries Going High-Tech At Broward Hospital

PEMBROKE PINES (CBSMiami) - The average operating room is crowded with equipment, cords, and cables but there's a new type of O.R., a high-tech one, also known as an integrated operating room.

Memorial Hospital Pembroke, in Pembroke Pines, currently has six of these high-tech operating rooms which boast less clutter and more high-tech gear.

Surgeon Dr. Brett Cohen explained that with nearly everything hanging from the ceiling, the new O.R. is indeed a less-cluttered work space. Everything they need to know about the patient is just a click away.

"We can bring up live feeds of x-rays, c.t. scans," Dr. Cohen explained.

Live video conferencing is also key element in the new operating rooms. If the doctor wants to consult another doctor down the hall, they can be present via video conference. Also, surgeons can consult with anyone around the world.

To further explain the benefits of the technology, Dr. Cohen, showing CBS4 a video of gall stones, said, "If this was specimen that was taken out and was sent over to pathology to get some questions (answered) , we can indicate what we're looking at."

Down the hall from Dr. Cohen, pathologist Dr. Andrea Blumberg can analyze the video the surgeon sent as well as monitor his life feed.  Also, she can communicate with him in real time, a "back and forth" conversation can take place without the surgeon having to leave the patient's side.

Back in the O.R., the cameras can be moved and maneuvered in many ways, allowing a specialist or anyone to take part in the surgery, without being in the operating room.

Hospitals from around the country are sending people to Memorial Hospital Pembroke to take a closer look at these high-tech operating rooms.