TORONTO - Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children is getting $10 million from the federal government to develop the KidsArm robotic surgical system.
KidsArm is an image-guided medical robot designed for paediatric patients.
The hospital says surgeons will be able to operate the tabletop tool by using a pair of hand controllers.
It will allow them to perform less invasive procedures on child patients and reduce the average time of operations by as much as 90 per cent.
The hospital will develop KidsArm in partnership with MDA, Philips and other companies.
Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Peter Kent, who made the announcement with Gary Goodyear, minister of state for Science and Technology, says the money will help create more than 80 highly skilled jobs.
"This investment will reinforce southern Ontario's place as a world leader in medical research and innovation, and provide opportunities to export made-in-Canada technology to hospitals worldwide," Goodyear said in a statement.
