Meet Nigerian pastor Idachama, first robotic surgery patient at Ogun hospital

Idachama | Church Times Nigeria

Pastor Alexander Idachama has become the first patient to undergo robotic-assisted surgery at Redeemer’s Health Village Hospital, Redemption City, Ogun State, following a radical prostatectomy performed with the assistance of surgical robotics.

The procedure was carried out recently at the hospital in partnership with US-based RoboMed Global Inc., with Prof. Obi Ekwenna-Davis, co-founder of RoboMed Global, and local physicians, including Dr Ifeanyi, leading the surgical team.

The development has also seen Redeemer’s Health Village and RoboMed Global perform what was described as West Africa’s first 500km telerobotic surgery, in which surgeons at the Ogun State facility remotely operated on a patient with a kidney tumour in Abuja.

PUNCH Online on Friday reported that he spoke about his experience in a social media post monitored by Church Times and published September 22 after the operation.

Idachama said he learnt about the hospital through its Chief Executive Officer, Dr Adedamola Dada, and decided to seek treatment there.

“I arrived at the hospital in the last week of August and was taken through a series of orientation sessions to acquaint me with the surgical process,” he said.

Idachama said he subsequently met Dr Ifeanyi and other members of the surgical team, who explained what he should expect before, during and after the procedure.

He described the robotic system used for the operation as world-class.

According to him, choosing Redeemer’s Health Village Hospital saved him the cost of travelling abroad for medical treatment.

The surgery involved a radical prostatectomy, a procedure in which the entire prostate gland is removed along with surrounding tissue, including the seminal vesicles and, where indicated, nearby pelvic lymph nodes. It is primarily used as a treatment for localised prostate cancer.

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Idachama said he was discharged less than 24 hours after the procedure.

Although he experienced mild pain following the operation, he said “the pain subsided quickly.”

Reflecting on his recovery, the pastor said robotic-assisted surgery offered greater surgical precision, significantly less pain and a gentler impact on patients.

He also said he would recommend Redeemer’s Health Village Hospital to his friends and family, describing its facilities as comparable to the best in the world.

The development comes as robotic-assisted surgery continues to be introduced into surgical practice in Nigeria, with the Redeemer’s Health Village procedure adding a patient experience to the facility’s reported adoption of the technology.

PUNCH Online had reported the surgery on a middle aged man on September 17.

Surgeons at Redeemer’s Health Village, Ogun State, had said robotic surgery reduces patients’ pain and shortens hospital stay because it uses smaller incisions that cause less tissue damage.

Idachama holds a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and is a researcher specializing in electronics, electrical communication, and smart grid applications.

According to an interview he granted, Idachama serves as a pastor with the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), the global church network that owns and operates the Redeemer’s Health Village medical facility.