A startup launched as a pandemic solution for medical students has grown into a global platform for educating and inspiring students and doctors around the world.
Vivo Surgery, co-founded by McMaster surgery professor Aleksa Cenic, has developed a web-based platform that livestreams surgeries to remote learners on their laptops. Initially created for medical students, the platform has expanded to serve engineering students and train surgeons.
“Having that bird’s eye view from the surgeon, along with multiple camera angles and the ability to ask questions during the surgery — it’s very inspirational,” says Cenic.
“More than a dozen McMaster professors of surgery have used Vivo Surgery for training initiatives, both locally and internationally.”
Cenic and co-founder Phillip Mohabir launched Vivo Surgery after medical students were frustrated by their lack of access to operating rooms during the pandemic.
“These were McMaster students trying to get experience to see whether they wanted to be surgeons,” says Cenic.
Student engagement can be more meaningful with the platform, says Cenic, because remote learners are often more comfortable asking the surgeons questions.
After sharing the platform with engineering students in McMaster’s Integrated Biomedical Engineering & Health Sciences (IBioMed) program, Cenic noticed a surprising outcome: “The great thing about the engineering students is they’re watching surgeries and approaching me with ideas for their own startups,” says Cenic.
“Now they’re designing new tools to solve problems and prevent complications in surgery.”
Yazdaan Ahmad, an iBioMed student, co-founded Innovo Surgica, after using the Vivo Surgery platform to watch a spinal surgery.
“It gave us a front-row seat, actually, multiple seats, in the OR,” says Ahmad.
“We saw the operation from different angles — a wide shot of the whole team and detailed close-ups of the tools in action. We were able to see the small things; how the tools were handled and how the team moved together.
With Cenic’s help, Ahmad and co-founder iBioMed student Manvir Bhangu are developing a new tool that prevents tears in the protective layer of tissue around the spine called the dura. Accidental dura tears during spinal surgery can cause long-term health problems for patients.
“Being able to ask questions while watching made the experience even more powerful. It gave us a clear view of both the procedure and the challenges surgeons face in real time,” said Ahmad.
“Instead of just watching passively, we were asking questions in real time: ‘Why use that tool?’ or ‘Could this part be done differently?’ That back-and-forth let us spot a real pain point and start thinking like problem-solvers. That moment was when Innovo Surgica was born.”
The Innovo Surgica team is part of The Forge’s Startup Survivor Program, a four-month innovation program open to McMaster University students and recent alumni. The program gives technical and business support to startups preparing for an annual Pitch Competition where winning teams split $30,000 in prize money.
Cenic hopes the Vivo Surgery platform will encourage more young people, especially students from under-represented communities, to consider a career in surgery.
“Why shouldn’t students be able to see orthopedic surgery one week, then brain surgery the following week and the next week view plastic surgery?”
As the population ages and demand for surgical care increases, innovative, low-cost training platforms like Vivo Surgery can also open doors for medical professionals in remote communities, says Cenic.
“People are driving four to six hours from their community to get basic surgeries … and general practitioners are leaving their communities to get training. We can teach doctors remotely while they continue to provide primary care in their communities.”