to 4K now or making plans to adopt 8K down the line, here's what you
need to know about improving how surgeons see surgery.
Quality and compatibility
Image quality is of course the top priority when deciding which video
system to purchase. Is the entire source-to-display system — from the
scopes' cameras to the processors to the monitors — true 4K? Does
the system offer your surgeons better depth perception and the ability
to use different colors to identify tissue abnormalities? These are all
important considerations that surgeons must assess during extended
trials of each platform.
There are other factors to consider that also play a critical role in
your purchasing decision, such as brand familiarity, the relationship
you have with the vendor and the platform's ability to integrate with
your current imaging technology.
Charles Kaczmarek, RN, MBA, director of surgical services at
Ascension Seton Medical Center in Austin, Texas, recently oversaw a
major renovation at his facility that included upgrading 12 of its ORs
to 4K imaging.
One of the things the vendor Ascension ultimately chose had going
for it was instant compatibility. "A lot of our video technology was
already in place, so there was already a bit of uniformity and familiari-
ty in terms of the end-user," says Mr. Kaczmarek.
Compatibility is a serious point to consider, agrees Rohit Soans, MD,
medical director of bariatric surgery at Temple University Hospital
and an assistant professor of surgery at the Lewis Katz School of
Medicine at Temple University in Philadelphia. This is especially true
when you don't purchase all video components at once. If you buy
cameras and monitors piecemeal over time, those individual compo-
nents must work with one another to create a true 4K system.
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