The Severance Robot and Minimally Invasive Surgery (MIS) Center has established a strategic alliance with Intuitive Surgical Inc., a corporation that manufactures the da Vinci Surgical System. The Severance Robot and MIS Center and Intuitive Surgical signed an MOU on April 23, the same day as the grand opening of the Avison Biomedical Research Center (ABMRC). The official ceremony, which also marked the relocation and expansion of the da Vinci Training Center, was attended by Lee Chul, President and CEO of the Yonsei University Health System, Chung Nam-sik, General Director of Severance Hospital, Choi Young-deuk, Director of the Severance Robot and MIS Center, and Mr. Zeron van Heeswijk, Vice President of Intuitive Surgical Asia-Pacific. The MOU partnership will allow for collaboration on the advancement of high-tech surgical technologies, as well as for training and education. According to the MOU agreement, Intuitive Surgical will expand its support and services for the Severance Robot and MIS Center. In particular, the corporation will offer training programs for both the existing da Vinci S robotic surgical system and its new model, the da Vinci Si, meaning that the training center will be equipped with two robotic surgical systems. Also, for the first time in the Asia-Pacific region, Intuitive Surgical will dispatch a certified professional trainer from its corporate headquarters to upgrade and standardize the quality of the robotic surgery training. Severance Hospital will provide an optimal environment for such training, with all the resources and experimental facilities offered by the ABMRC. Both institutions will promote opportunities for trainees to observe robotic-assisted, minimally-invasive surgeries. Intuitive Surgical plans to allow international surgeons, who have some experience in robotic surgery, to participate in the intensive programs at Severance Hospital. The Severance Robot and MIS Center, for its part, will offer intensive programs for surgical departments that perform robotic surgeries on the thyroid, stomach, prostate, kidney, or colon, as well as for obstetricians and gynecologists. Intuitive Surgical will also sponsor fellowship programs at Severance Hospital for international surgeons, collaborating in promoting the fellowship and recruiting fellows from throughout the world.