Teens Get Hands-On With Robotic Surgery at San Jose Hospital

June 23, 2026 - 19:25

It's not every day that a teenager gets to pilot a robotic surgical device. But on Monday, a group of high school students in San Jose did exactly that. Dr. May-Anh Nguyen, a minimally invasive surgeon at Good Samaritan Hospital, led a special event aimed at sparking interest in medical careers among young people.

The session was part of a broader effort to introduce students to the high-tech side of healthcare. Instead of just talking about surgery, the hospital let the teens step up to the console of a da Vinci surgical robot. They practiced picking up tiny objects and moving instruments with precision, getting a feel for what it's like to operate from a control station rather than standing over a patient.

Nguyen explained that robotic-assisted surgery is now common for procedures like gallbladder removal, hernia repair, and some cancer surgeries. The robot gives surgeons better vision, more control, and smaller incisions. But she also emphasized that the machine is just a tool. The real skill comes from the person driving it.

For many of the students, this was their first close look at a career in medicine. Some said they had only thought about becoming doctors or nurses in a general way. After the demonstration, they started to see how technology and surgery come together. One student mentioned that the experience made her consider engineering as a path into healthcare.

The hospital plans to hold more of these events. The goal is not just to recruit future surgeons, but to show young people that there are many ways to be part of the medical field. Whether it's designing robots, programming software, or performing operations, the opportunities go far beyond video games.