In addition to work surrounding the Gas Insufflation-Less Laparoscopic 
Surgery (GILLS) Registry and TARGET training program, GHRG-ST (in collaboration Pd-m International and partners in India) are developing a new device to lift the abdominal wall during GILLS surgery.
By designing a device that is easy for surgeons working in rural, remote locations to sterilise, transport, manufacture, repair and afford, the team aim to make using the GILLS technique and hence minimally invasive surgery, a reality for rural surgeons.
Ensuring the device is intuitive to use, entirely surgeon-operated (freeing up the valuable time of surgical assistants) and creates a view of the abdominal cavity which is comparable to conventional laparoscopic surgery, the team will deliver a device that makes quality minimally invasive surgery accessible to patients who previously could not afford it.
In a fantastic display of the power of interdisciplinary collaboration, the team of surgeons, engineers and product designers from the UK and India have already developed and tested a prototype on cadavers in the UK and in India. Building on the overwhelmingly positive feedback from rural surgeons, the team will be optimising and manufacturing the device in the coming months.
