{"id":37139,"date":"2026-06-23T23:34:31","date_gmt":"2026-06-23T23:34:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/37139\/"},"modified":"2026-06-23T23:34:31","modified_gmt":"2026-06-23T23:34:31","slug":"funding-in-nsw-budget-for-world-class-robotic-surgery-in-orange","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/37139\/","title":{"rendered":"Funding in NSW budget for ‘world-class’ robotic surgery in Orange"},"content":{"rendered":"

Whistleblower doctors in regional NSW have won a long-running campaign to ensure they can continue to deliver “world-class” care to patients.<\/p>\n

The NSW government has announced $9.9 million in the state budget for robotic surgical equipment at Orange Health Service in the state’s central west, with $2.7 million allocated in the next financial year.<\/p>\n

The budget papers show an estimated completion date in 2028.<\/p>\n

The announcement has been welcomed by Orange Health Service’s head of cancer services and cancer clinical trials unit, Rob Zielinski.<\/p>\n

“A robot is not asking for something experimental or cutting edge,” Dr Zielinski said.<\/p>\n

“A surgical robot is now standard equipment for cancer care in hospitals across Australia.<\/p>\n

“Our community deserves the same standard. Not second best. Not ‘good enough for the regions’. The same.”<\/p>\n

He said the announcement would mean regional cancer patients would be spared having to travel to Sydney for this treatment.<\/p>\n

“A surgical robot means cancer patients across our entire region can receive world-class surgery without leaving home,” he said.<\/p>\n

Whistleblowers get results\"Man<\/p>\n

Rob Knox and his colleagues have been calling for robotic surgical equipment in western NSW. (ABC News: Shaun Kingma)<\/p>\n

The budget windfall comes 13 months after senior clinicians in the area raised serious concerns about the state of health care in the region.<\/p>\n

The hospital’s director of surgery, Rob Knox, and head of urology, Clair Whelan, revealed in May 2025 that doctors had been asked to reclassify cancer surgeries<\/a> to avoid breaching waiting list targets.<\/p>\n

The Western NSW Local Health District (WNSWLHD) rejected the claims, but NSW Health ordered a review of the re-categorisation of surgeries at Orange Hospital<\/p>\n

The doctors also raised concerns that the WNSWLHD had not supported calls to lobby for robotic surgery <\/a>to be available in the region.<\/p>\n

The WNSWLHD later announced it was “reassessing” the viability of the equipment<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Dr Knox said the budget announcement was a testament to doctors’ efforts to advocate for patient care.<\/p>\n

“We are excited to see the government investing in the skills and enabling the capabilities of our region’s clinical workforce, supporting specialist recruitment and helping us work towards our vision of a centre of excellence for regional patients,” Dr Knox said.<\/p>\n

Dr Whelan said the surgical robot was vital for the future.<\/p>\n

“Until now, patients requiring complex urological procedures \u2014 such as prostate, kidney, or bladder surgery \u2014 have often needed to travel to Sydney or other major centres for robotic-assisted treatment,” Dr Whelan said.<\/p>\n

“This has meant added travel time, cost, and time away from family and work, particularly burdensome for patients managing a cancer diagnosis.<\/p>\n

\"Empty<\/p>\n

Surgeons at Orange say robotic surgery is needed to deliver world-class patient care. (ABC News: Shaun Kingma)<\/p>\n

“With a surgical robot based locally, patients in Western NSW can access the same minimally invasive, high-precision surgery available in metropolitan hospitals.<\/p>\n

“Robotic surgery typically results in smaller incisions, less blood loss, reduced post-operative pain, and faster recovery times compared to traditional open surgery, allowing patients to return home and to their normal lives sooner.<\/p>\n

“Robotic surgery in Western NSW secures the future of urology in the district,” she said.<\/p>\n

Mr Park promised in August 2025 that robotic surgery would be available in Orange.<\/p>\n

“Robotic-assisted surgery is helping patients return to their families, work, and daily lives sooner,” Mr Park said.<\/p>\n

“The NSW government is committed to improving access to surgical care closer to home, reducing the need to travel long distances for treatment and recovery.”<\/p>\n

\"Three<\/p>\n

Orange clinicians (from left) John Kerdic, Brayden March and James McNeil with a surgical robot that Dr March used at a Sydney hospital.\u00a0 (Supplied)<\/p>\n

The independent Member for Orange, Phil Donato, who helped lobby for the equipment, described the funding as a “landmark achievement”.<\/p>\n

“This is a game-changing investment for our region and a major step forward for healthcare in country New South Wales,” Mr Donato said.<\/p>\n

“This investment is not just about purchasing a piece of equipment. It is about strengthening our entire healthcare system, supporting our surgeons and ensuring Orange remains a centre of excellence for specialist healthcare in regional Australia.”<\/p>\n

Dr Knox said the years of lobbying have paid off.<\/p>\n

“We are grateful to Health Minister Ryan Park and to our local [state MP] Phil Donato for their engagement and support in achieving this milestone,” he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Whistleblower doctors in regional NSW have won a long-running campaign to ensure they can continue to deliver “world-class”…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":37140,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[22,21,822,39,5224,31202,31199,31200,31201,5619],"class_list":["post-37139","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-australia","tag-au","tag-austrlia","tag-doctors","tag-hospital","tag-nsw-budget","tag-orange-health-service","tag-robotic-surgery","tag-robotic-surgical-equipment","tag-surgeons","tag-surgery"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37139","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37139"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37139\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37140"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37139"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37139"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37139"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}