Equipment Resource Technician Lynnette Tatton and Dr. Melissa McGee present one of the new towers at the BUH. (julia.lovettsquires/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Julia Lovett-Squires

Lap towers

Laparoscopy towers now in use at BUH

Mar 6, 2025 | 2:29 PM

In one of the Battlefords Union Hospital operating rooms, General Surgeon Melissa Mcgee and Equipment Resource Technician Lynnette Tatton turned on a new laprascopy tower that was just put into service two weeks ago.

As the tower blinked to life, the wand in McGee’s hand started to glow and as she pointed it at the room and the monitor’s camera showed the theatre for what it is: a jumble of lights, machinery, a gurney – all of which play a role in saving lives.

As she moved the wand and compelled Tatton to make a heart with her hands, the laparoscopy towers’ monitors showed what acute care is all about: compassion.

The BUH now boasts three state-of-the-art towers that came with a price tag of over $500,000 and the surgeon explained it has given the team the ability to not only perform safer surgery, they can also identify anatomy more clearly.

“This is very exciting for us,” she said.

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Comparing the upgrade to driving in a vehicle with a backup camera from about 10 years ago, she explained the driver can see what they need to which makes them think the patient is OK.

“Then you go drive the new BMW by your best friend and you’re like ‘Whoa, I can see the pebbles on the road,’” she said.

Lynnette Tatton smiles as she watches the screen of the new laparoscopy towers. (Julia Lovett-Squires/battlefordsNOW Staff)

McGee is excited about how much the outcomes will improve for patients.

“I’ve been in the OR, now that we have them, I think four times so far,” said McGee.

“The resolution is significantly better. The screens are clearer, we can see just more brightly what we can do and then it will also allow us to move into some next generation operating techniques.”

The upgrade has also led to the teams being able to complete surgeries more quickly and though it’s still early days, they are seeing positive outcomes.

“Patients are under anesthetic less time, ‘cause of course if you can see and be confident in what you’re doing, the surgeries just become easier by technology and that’s always good for patient care.”

Roughly 90 per cent of surgeries including gallbladder, hysterectomy and appendicitis at the hospital can be performed laparoscopically and according to Tatton, this also translates into safer outcomes for the people who have to go under the knife.

The laparoscopy tower. (Julia Lovett-Squires/battlefordsNOW Staff)

“We can not be in a big facility like Saskatoon, but we can operate like Saskatoon because our community is so generous to us,” she said.

“I think people coming in from out of town, it’s less time away from their families, less time away from their home. They get to have their operation today and go home tomorrow,” Tatton said, adding they may need to stay overnight due to distance.

Dr. Melissa McGee turns the camera on herself. (Julia Lovett-Squires/battlefordsNOW Staff)

McGee agreed and said the Battlefords is transitioning away from a community hospital and becoming more and more of a regional centre.

“We’re also able to do a higher volume of surgeries because it’s laparoscopic – our turnover’s quicker – and we’re just able to do more on just any given day,” she said.

“When patients recover so quickly and do so well, beds are always full but we’re able to put more people through those surgical beds by using small techniques.”

Those techniques include a one centimetre incision which gives the surgeon access to an entire body cavity.

McGee’s hand in full detail. (Julia Lovett-Squires/battlefordsNOW Staff)

“We can see all the organs and everything that’s going on inside there and then we can make really good decisions about what’s best for the patient,” she said.

Another advantage to having new equipment is that it has become a calling card for new staff.

“Our surgical program has had some recent retirements, but we’ve been very successful in recruiting new young surgeons into our community and I attribute a lot of that to having modern equipment,” she said.

Chris Etcheverry, director of acute care agreed.

“When I tour Canada and if I go into other hospitals, I always look: how new is it, how clean is it,” he said.

“These are all the things that people look at when they’re coming into our community to work or to reside here, these are the things they look at.”

The towers were purchased from Stryker after the community came together and fundraised for what is now the Battlefords Healthcare Foundation.

“The amount of dollars we raise for the size of community that we are is actually phenomenal comparatively to other foundations in the province,” he said.

“It’s just a testament to the philanthropy we have going on in the Battlefords.”

In the meantime, the recruitment of physicians continues.

“That’s only because we continue to evolve and change with the times,” said McGee.

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julia.lovettsquires@pattisonmedia.com

On BlueSky: juleslovett.bsky.social