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- RFK Jr. shockingly allowed to participate in open-heart surgery (irishstar.com)
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was permitted to engage with a surgical robot during an open-heart procedure while a patient was on the operating table.
This event took place during Kennedy’s “Take Back Your Health” tour in Ohio, which also promotes his MAHA movement. One of his stops was the Cleveland Clinic, where the incident occurred.
According to a report from KFF Health News, Kennedy toured the facility and met with CEO Tom Mihaljevic. During the visit, he was allowed to sit at the controls of a surgical robot while a patient was undergoing heart surgery. The patient, presumably under anesthesia, was unaware that Kennedy was positioned at the machine’s console above them.
Initial reports suggested that Kennedy “briefly tested the teaching console” during the operation. However, the article was later updated to clarify that the surgical robot was disconnected from the patient at the time, meaning Kennedy did not actually operate the robotic hands on the heart surgery patient.
Amanda Seitz, a journalist who covered the story, confirmed via social media that the robotic system was indeed disconnected when Kennedy sat at the console. She also noted that although the secretary was present in the operating room with an active surgery underway, his interaction was limited to the disconnected teaching console.
A Cleveland Clinic spokesperson, Angela Smith, explained that Kennedy observed the robotic heart surgery and participated in a demonstration using the teaching console, which was not connected to the patient and incapable of performing any surgical functions. The Department of Health and Human Services was contacted for comment on the matter.
Seitz further described that multiple surgeons were actively treating the patient during Kennedy’s time at the console and emphasized that the clinic prohibited photography or video recording in the operating room.
One surgeon, Vamsi Aribindi, weighed in on the situation, noting that although the robot was disconnected, sitting at the console still carried some risk. He explained that surgeons need to “swap” instruments on the Da Vinci surgical system to take control, so Kennedy could not have manipulated the instruments unless he engaged this control.
The Cleveland Clinic utilizes robot-assisted technology to provide safer, more precise, and minimally invasive procedures. The surgical robot features an endoscopic camera and four robotic arms that surgeons control during operations.
Kennedy remarked to KFF that his involvement was part of a broader effort to “dismantle a corrupt system and replace it with something better,” aimed at addressing health challenges facing Americans today.
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- RFK Jr. shockingly allowed to participate in open-heart surgery (irishstar.com)