How a local surgeon aims to improve health equity in underserved communities through robotics

Dr. Shaneeta Johnson, an associate professor of surgery at Morehouse School of Medicine, discusses how she’s using robotic surgery to create equitable health care for underserved communities in the Atlanta area. (Photo credit: LaShawn Hudson WABE)

Dr. Shaneeta Johnson is on a mission to use robotic surgery as a pathway to improve health equity.

Johnson, who serves as a professor of surgery, chief of the Minimally Invasive and Bariatric Surgery Program, and the director at Morehouse School of Medicine, performs hundreds of surgeries using robots.

She says the procedures can be complex, but they’re precise, which can have better outcomes for the patient.