University IT
A Discussion With Dr. Teodor Grantcharov
AI Frontiers:
Dialogues with Tech Pioneers Podcast
Guest: Dr. Teodor Grantcharov
Transcript
Any views, discussions, or opinions expressed in this podcast do not represent in any way the opinions or positions of Stanford University, its staff, or its employees.
Don Cameron: Welcome to the AI Frontiers podcast, a dialogue with tech pioneers hosted by Stanford University Technology Training. I'm Don Cameron, and joining me here today, also from the Technology Training team, are John Keppler and Dong Liang. We are thrilled to have Dr. Teodor Grantcharov, a professor of surgery and Associate Chief Quality Officer for Innovation and Safety at Stanford Healthcare.
Don Cameron: Renowned for his work in surgical safety, Dr. Grantcharov pioneered the surgical black box concept, bringing modern safety systems into the OR. He founded the International Center for Surgical Safety and Surgical Safety Technologies, Inc., an academic startup focused on improving patient outcomes. With over 220 peer-reviewed publications, he is recognized globally for his contributions to surgical education and innovation.
Don Cameron: And Dr. Grantcharov, we appreciate you taking the time out of your busy schedule today to join us, and thank you very much for being here.
Dr. Teodor Grantcharov: Thank you, Don, and John, and Dong. Thank you for having me, and I'm looking forward to having an exciting and engaging conversation today.
Don Cameron: Great. Thank you. We just want to start things off if you can give us a little bit of history about the development of the OR black box?
Dr. Teodor Grantcharov: Yeah, absolutely. I started my surgical career in Copenhagen, Denmark, over 25 years ago, and I remember in the early stages, I focused my research and later my PhD on developing virtual reality systems that could measure the skill of the operating surgeon. At that time, that was unheard of. People didn't believe that there was a need to measure the skill of the surgeon because, of course, everyone is good enough. But we found that that wasn't the case. We found that we could develop a system that could measure skill, and we found that there was a great variability in skill and performance of surgeons.
