especially for those who need to adopt brand-new components to
work with the new system. "You need to consider the signal, moni-
tors, cables, recording, etc.," she says. "Generally, it's very costly to
switch to the 4K."
Jeff Blackwell, MHA, administrative director of surgical services at
Brigham and Women's Faulkner Hospital, notes that when the hospi-
tal upgraded to the 1080p system, they also wanted to ensure they had
the capability to move to 4K as it becomes the standard. "We worked
with our vendor to find out how easily we could transition to 4K in
the future," he says. "You have to push back on your vendor to find
out about future adaptability of the system."
Seeing in 3D
While 4K wasn't an option for the hospital at the time of their
upgrade, Dr. Kenney notes that 3D was, though many weren't sure if it
offered any clear benefits over HD systems.
"The big controversy at the time was whether we'd go for the 3D
technology," he says. "But, the timing wasn't great since manufactur-
ers were just getting into it. The gynecologists seemed to have the
most interest in it, but a lot of surgeons found that if you're proficient
with surgery, you might not need it as much."
"The 3D technology was very new at the time, and we thought that
the benefits of it just weren't quite worked out yet," adds Mr.
Blackwell. "We wanted the most cutting-edge technology out there
that gave us the most bang for our buck."
Dr. Ross, though, disagrees. She says 3D systems offer better visuali-
zation for surgeons over 2D systems, since they get a more accurate
look at a patient's anatomy, which may enhance safety. "The 3D sys-
tems improve depth, spatial orientation and you can really see from
all perspectives," she says. "You can avoid small arterial and venous
1 0 6
O U T P A T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E O N L I N E | O C T O B E R 2 0 1 5
