Suffolk News speaks to first West Suffolk Hospital patient operated on by Versius robot in Bury St Edmunds
A mum-of-three who was the first to be operated on by a robot at West Suffolk Hospital in Bury St Edmunds said the surgery to remove her gallbladder has already proved life-changing.
Sam Holmes, 47, of Long Melford, was asked if she would be willing to be operated on by a surgeon using the robot, after she was diagnosed with gallstones earlier this year.
After experiencing symptoms of nausea and pain, which sometimes left her so unwell she was unable to work, the busy mum, who enjoys horse riding, jumped at the opportunity to be the first patient to be operated on by the Versius robot.
Sam, who works for Savills Suffolk in Ipswich, said: “The surgeon was really thorough and explained the procedure to me and that it would mean I would have it done in a more timely fashion. I didn’t feel pressurised into it, I was actually very excited for the hospital.”
The associate director said she is an ‘advocate’ for WSH after giving birth to her three sons there and being cared for there after she broke her back in 2020. She said: “I felt it was really important to help the hospital. I have never had a bad experience there.”
Sam had her youngest son, Sidney, eight, with her when the surgeon talked her through the option of having robotic surgery. She said: “It was really interesting. He (the surgeon) explained where the robot had been made in Ely at the factory and what the procedure would be. “And Sid was like, ‘is this safe?’ he really questioned the surgeon. “And he said ‘yep it is safe,’ so we talked about it, and I said ‘Sid, this is pretty cool to be the first person. It is something I engaged with and was happy to be a part of immediately.”
If Sam hadn’t been operated on by the robot, she was told she would have been looking at a 12-month wait for surgery. “It was affecting every aspect of my life. It was affecting my work it was affecting me being able to look after the children and my horse,” said Sam, who is married to Ashley, 43. “I was living on soup and crackers and taking a lot of medication.”
After arriving at WSH on May 5, Sam was operated on by Mr Krashna Patel, a consultant who specialises in upper gastrointestinal surgery, at 1pm. Before the surgery, she got a glimpse of Versius and met the theatre team. Sam said the operation was a ‘game-changer’ after she was able to return home the evening of her surgery, at 9pm. “I think if I had the operation the other way, I probably would have been staying in. It definitely feels like the whole thing was much more manageable.”
Sam, who had been feeling unwell since November, said she felt relief from her symptoms after the operation was ‘immediate’. “It has been really life-changing to have that procedure, have it turned around that quickly and to be able to heal that quickly. Obviously I was uncomfortable for a couple of days and it wasn’t great but the incisions are very small; they glued them,” said Sam, who started her new job at Savills Suffolk following the procedure. I had a week off and a good seven-to-10 days when I couldn’t drive but I was up and working from home within a week.”
Now she said she would ‘100 per cent tell others’ in the same situation to opt for robot surgery. “It was a really lovely opportunity for the hospital and for the surgeon that did the operation,” said Sam. “For them professionally, it is a really special thing and it is a bit of history that I think the hospital deserves to have because it’s a great hospital,” said Sam, who now hopes to fund-raise for the My WiSH hospital charity’s robot appeal.
Following her surgery, Sam said she has been interested in hearing the mixed responses from people she has spoken to. She said: “Some have been quite engaged and like ‘oh my god that’s amazing’ and others have been like ‘no, there’s no way’ and I have said ‘yes, it is a robot,’ but there is a surgeon making those moves on a console with controllers. It’s not like you’ve got robots taking over.”
Sam said she wanted to share her experience to raise awareness of how the robot is used and the fact that it means people’s recovery is better and they get home quicker. Following her operation, Sam said her sons Sidney, Arthur, 10, and George, 16, think it’s cool that she was the first to be operated on by Versius and have been celebrating with plenty of Peter Crouch robot dances.
“It has been a point of conversation and something we’ve talked about,” said Sam. “Overall, I think it is the way medicine is going to be going and it would be crazy for West Suffolk not to be in front of the curve and able to offer that.”
Sam thanked the hospital staff who treated her and made her feel really special before, during and after the operation. “They’d had a cake made, it was a really big event. It was like the queen had come.”
A month on from the operation Sam said she can barely see her scars and she was recently able to enjoy a home-cooked curry without any side effects. She hopes to be back horse-riding in the coming week.
To donate to the My WiSH robot appeal please visit: https://mywishcharity.co.uk/appeals/robot/
By Suzanne Day. Thanks to Suffolk News for their support with our Robot Appeal