Thought Leadership
Informed Patients, More Choices, Better Conversations

A diagnosis can change everything in an instant.

Many patients describe a moment when everything else fades into the background, and what remains are the questions that matter most: How serious is it? What are my options? What does recovery look like? What’s the best approach?

As a surgeon, I’ve sat across from patients in that moment more times than I can count. It’s never routine. It’s about offering compassion, choices, and information. Each conversation is a reminder that the responsibility of being a physician goes beyond making the right clinical call—it also means ensuring patients and their loved ones feel prepared to navigate what comes next.

That navigation starts with awareness. Patients can’t weigh their surgical options thoughtfully if they don’t know what’s available to them or understand how those options may shape their outcomes—from recovery time to postoperative pain. These can differ meaningfully depending on the surgical approach, whether it's open surgery, a conventional minimally invasive procedure, or robotic-assisted surgery including with da Vinci. When patients are informed, the conversation changes: They are more engaged in the questions they ask and make decisions with greater confidence.

But for many patients, that level of understanding remains out of reach. Patients often have limited awareness and understanding of robotic-assisted surgery, hold misconceptions about the technology, and may rely on online or social media sources for information, some of which may contain misinformation.¹

Patients often make sense of complex medical decisions through real-world experiences. Based on my experience as a surgeon, many arrived at my practice through recommendation from other patients or referrals from their physicians, while others have done their own research to find a robotic-assisted surgeon.

What they’re often looking for is harder to search for online: They want to know what a decision feels like for someone who has been through it. Hearing how others navigated a similar moment—the questions they asked, the options they considered, and what recovery required—can make these decisions more tangible and less overwhelming.

That human element is at the heart of what we’re doing at Intuitive. We’re collaborating with Pro Football Hall of Famer Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders—an inspiration to millions across the U.S.—who last year chose to undergo da Vinci robotic-assisted surgery after an informed conversation with his physician about his surgical options. And because his experience mirrors what so many patients face, it’s the kind of story that can turn a vague awareness of surgical options into something actionable—especially those who may have heard about da Vinci robotic-assisted surgery but aren’t sure what it means for them or what steps to take next.

We believe that greater public awareness of surgical options gives patients a foundation for more meaningful conversations with their physicians. It shifts the clinical encounter to one where a patient arrives ready to engage. Every patient deserves access to that kind of information.

Learn more at davincisurgery.com.