A San Diego surgeon made Internet history recently, when he performed an operation that was broadcast in its entirety via the web.
Dr. Joseph Jankiewicz performed a hip replacement at Sharp Coronado Hospital on January 28, and the procedure was streamed live. The operation was uploaded to the website of the International Congress for Joint Reconstruction (ICJR). It was later posted online so that both doctors and patients could see it.
Jankiewicz believes that broadcasting surgeries live, or making videos of the operations available, is going to prove to be the future of medical education. He says the days of paging through a textbook looking for information or references are over, and notes that students can watch a video presentation, potentially making it easier for them to understand the procedure, stating:
“…it makes more sense when you see a video as opposed to printed literature.”
The ICJR is already broadcasting operations, and averages approximately 30 such events annually. Although this operation can only be seen by members at present, videos of previous surgeries are publicly viewable at the ICJR website.
Sharp might consider expanding on this method by broadcasting more procedures. The hospital could work with brochure printers to create a booklet describing the types of operations its surgeons will be broadcasting, when the broadcasts will take place, and how to access them.
