About | RSIG, Robotic Surgery Interest Group

FIG. 01 // OUR STORY

A place to explore robotic surgery beyond the lecture hall.

PLATE // FROM THE LECTURE HALL TO THE CONSOLE

The Robotic Surgery Interest Group (RSIG) is the first student-led robotic surgery interest group in the Middle East, founded at Alfaisal University's College of Medicine. It is the University's first student organisation dedicated exclusively to robotic and minimally invasive surgery.

Robotic surgery is no longer the future of the operating room, it is the present.

Leading centres in Riyadh operate some of the most advanced robotic surgery programmes in the world, and the Kingdom's healthcare transformation under Vision 2030 continues to accelerate the adoption of surgical technology. Yet students have had no structured way into the field before residency. RSIG exists to be that way in.

Through simulation-first training, a supervised research pipeline, and public awareness work, RSIG gives medical students genuine access to robotic and minimally invasive surgery: the ARM workshops (Advanced Robotic and Minimally Invasive Training), from console familiarisation, da Vinci suturing and simulation and laparoscopic courses to advanced specialty-based workshops delivered alongside practising robotic surgeons.

RSIG operates under the supervision of Prof. Dieter Broering, Dr. Dimitri A. Raptis, Dr. Suha K. Kaaki and Prof. Feras Khaliel, and under the umbrella of the Robotic Surgery Society of Saudi Arabia (RSS), the first robotic surgery society in Saudi Arabia, the Gulf, and the Middle East.

FIG. 02 // LOGO AND IDENTITY

Logo and identity.

The robot carries his name; we carry his pen. RSIG // IN LEONARDO'S MIRROR HAND

The da Vinci surgical system is the platform that defines modern robotic surgery, it carries the name of Leonardo da Vinci, the Renaissance master whose anatomical drawings founded surgical illustration. The RSIG identity honours that lineage.

The palette is drawn entirely from Leonardo's notebooks: sepia ink, the iron-gall ink he wrote in; sanguine, the red chalk of his anatomical drawings, whose name means "of blood"; parchment, the paper of the codices; and charcoal umber, the underdrawing beneath them all.

Official logo

Sepia ink
The iron-gall ink he wrote in.
Sanguine
The red chalk of his anatomical drawings.
Parchment
The paper of the codices.
Charcoal umber
The underdrawing beneath them all.

FIG. 03 // MISSION AND VISION

What we are building.

01 Mission

To give medical students genuine, structured access to robotic and minimally invasive surgery before residency, through simulation-first training, supervised research, and mentorship from the surgeons defining the field in the region.

02 Vision

To be the model for student-level robotic surgery education in the Middle East: a group whose members enter residency already fluent in the tools, the literature, and the community of surgical robotics.

FIG. 04 // OUR PEOPLE

Leadership, guidance and continuity.

Names and titles are shown as the group has published them.

The Board of Directors leads RSIG, and each of the four departments has two student heads. The Advisory Board form is open now.

See what is open

FIG. 05 // FROM THE FOUNDERS

From the founders.

Five students founded RSIG. Here is why, in their own words.

FIG. 06 // IMPACT AND RECOGNITION

Work recorded across education, research and service.

RSIG was founded in 2026. This is what is true today. We add to this list only when something has happened.

UMBRELLA SOCIETY

Robotic Surgery Society of Saudi Arabia (RSS)

RSIG operates under the umbrella of the RSS, the first robotic surgery society in Saudi Arabia, the Gulf and the Middle East. Its President and Founder, Dr. Suha K. Kaaki, sits on the RSIG Advisory Board.
INSTITUTIONAL AFFILIATION

King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre

RSIG works with two centres of excellence at KFSHRC, Riyadh: the Organ Transplant Centre of Excellence (OTCoE) and the Heart Centre of Excellence. Prof. Dieter Broering and Dr. Dimitri A. Raptis work at the OTCoE. Prof. Feras Khaliel is Deputy Executive Director of the Heart Centre of Excellence.
HOME

Alfaisal University, College of Medicine

RSIG is the University's first student organisation dedicated exclusively to robotic and minimally invasive surgery.
LATEST EVENT

Each event has its own page with the facts, the programme and the photos we have.

All past events

FIG. 07 // THE GAP

The gap, measured.

Students // Saudi Arabia22.6% of 239 medical students in Saudi Arabia said they had any background in robotic surgery, mostly from the internet.

Sultan et al., J Med Educ Curric Dev, 2022 (opens in a new tab)

Surgeons // Saudi Arabia37.0% of 311 practising surgeons in the first nationwide Saudi survey said they had received formal robotic training.

Almohamdi et al., J Robot Surg, 2026 (opens in a new tab)

Students // Italy89.4% of 509 medical students in Italy said medical schools should offer teaching in robotic surgery. 63.5% had no background knowledge of it.

Gangemi et al., J Robot Surg, 2025 (opens in a new tab)

Single surveys with self-reported answers from people who chose to take part, linked to their sources. Read them as signals, not verdicts.

FIG. 08 // WHERE TO GO NEXT

You have met the people. Now see the work.

The Board and four departments All programs Get involved

A student-led home for robotic surgery at Alfaisal.