On Wednesday, the hospital introduced the new Robotic Surgical Assistant (ROSA) that will be used by the hospital’s orthopedic surgeons for hip and knee replacement surgeries.

Growing the orthopedics clinic at TRMC has been a priority of Leah Glasgo, CEO and president of UnityPoint Health — Fort Dodge, for several years, she said. In 2019, the hospital entered a new partnership with the Center for Neurosciences, Orthopaedics & Spine PC (also known as CNOS) to bring orthopedic care back to Fort Dodge.

“It has been really a blessing to our community and the people we take care of right here at home,” she said.

The orthopedic surgery staff have used the ROSA in about five surgeries over the last three weeks, according to surgeon Dr. Prashanth Anand.

During surgery, Anand, or fellow orthopedic surgeon Dr. Elijah Miller, places probes into the joint undergoing operation and those probes collect data both before and during surgery to help the surgeons use precision accuracy to tailor the joint implant to the patient’s unique anatomy.

“It helps the surgeon in deciding some of the factors intraoperatively,” Anand said. “It assists us in some of the complex procedures so we can get a well-aligned along with a well-balanced joint.”

For patients, a well-aligned joint will extend the life of the joint, he said. Joints implanted with standard surgical procedures have a 10 to 15 year lifespan and by using the ROSA for precision, surgeons can extend that to 20 or more years.

He said that the well-balanced joints also feel more natural to patients and improve patient satisfaction.

“We’re really proud of our orthopedic team, the work that they’re doing and the advancement in technology that we have available right here at UnityPoint Health Fort Dodge with our partnership with CNOS,” Glasgo said.

The device cost around $800,000, a well-placed investment, Glasgo said.

“This kind of advancement of technology does cost quite a bit of money,” she said. “But it’s important for us to be able to provide excellence in orthopedics here in our community so that people don’t have to travel — you can get everything you need right here.”

Recently, TRMC was recognized as the first hospital in Iowa to receive the DNV Hip and Knee Replacement Program Certification, which validates the hospital’s excellence across the spectrum of hip and knee replacement care, from diagnosis to treatment, rehabilitation, education and outcomes.

“A lot of exciting things have been happening here in orthopedics,” Anand said. “We are excited and look forward to delivering advanced joint replacement surgeries here and at the same time making sure we meet a high standard of care.”