Dr. Evan Boyar

By Evan Boyar, MD

At Broward Health, our mission is to deliver exceptional care while advancing the technologies and treatments available to the communities we serve. As healthcare evolves, we continue to invest in innovative solutions that improve outcomes, enhance patient experience and expand access to high-quality care close to home.

Across our system, including four hospitals, we have made significant investments in surgical robotics and cardiac electrophysiology over the past year. These advancements are transforming how physicians treat complex conditions, helping patients to often recover faster, possibly reduce their lengths of stay and benefit from more personalized care.

Advancing Robotic Surgery Across Broward Health

One of our most significant recent investments is the acquisition of two da Vinci 5 Surgical Systems at Broward Health Medical Center and Broward Health Coral Springs.

This next-generation robotic platform enhances minimally invasive surgery with greater precision, visualization, and control, allowing surgeons to perform complex procedures through small incisions, which can result in less pain, reduced scarring and quicker recovery times.

The first procedure performed using the da Vinci 5 system at Broward Health Medical Center was a successful colon resection conducted by Felice De Stefano, M.D., a colorectal surgeon with the Broward Health Physician Group, on a patient in his 70s with a colon tumor.

This technology strengthens our ability to support physicians with advanced tools while maintaining the highest standards of clinical care.

Transforming Heart Care

While advancements in surgical robotics are transforming the operating room, similar innovation is reshaping how we treat complex cardiovascular disease.

As home to one of South Florida’s first structural heart programs, Broward Health continues to expand its capabilities. The addition of a fellowship-trained cardiologist specializing in structural heart disease further strengthens this program.

For patients who are not candidates for open-heart surgery, these advancements can be life changing. In February, Pablo Rengifo-Moreno, M.D., director of structural heart disease at Broward Health, successfully performed the hospital’s first combined Transcatheter Edge-to-Edge Repair (TEER) procedure addressing both the tricuspid and mitral valves in a high-risk patient who was not a candidate for open-heart surgery. This minimally invasive procedure, performed in a cardiac catheterization lab under general anesthesia, offers a life-changing option for patients with complex valve disease.

Building on this momentum, our commitment to innovation extends into cardiac electrophysiology. Jose Baez Escudero, M.D., chief of cardiology, and Jonathan Nieves, M.D., a cardiac electrophysiologist with the Broward Health Physician Group, recently performed Broward Health’s first non-thermal pulse field ablation procedures using Medtronic’s Affera technology. This approach treats atrial fibrillation (AFib), a common heart rhythm disorder that significantly increases stroke risk. By combining cardiac mapping and ablation into a single catheter, the technology streamlines the procedure, reduces procedure time and allows most patients to return home the same day.

Together, these investments reflect Broward Health’s strong growth in its cardiac program, ranking second in cardiac surgery volume in Broward County with 355 open-heart procedures performed and achieving 7% growth over the prior year.

Expanding Precision in Orthopedic Surgery

As we approach Broward Health’s 90th anniversary, we are expanding advanced orthopedic technologies to meet the needs of a growing and aging population, with nearly 19% of Broward County residents now 65 and older.

To support this increasing demand, Broward Health Imperial Point became the first hospital in Broward County to acquire the Stryker Mako 4 robotic-assisted surgical system for total hip, total knee and partial knee replacements. This system combines advanced 3D CT-based planning with robotic guidance to create personalized surgical plans tailored to each patient’s anatomy, improving precision, reducing pain and supporting faster recovery.

Building on this investment, Broward Health Coral Springs has further enhanced orthopedic care with the CORI Surgical System, a handheld robotic platform that allows surgeons to create real-time 3D models of the joint and make highly precise adjustments during surgery. This tissue-preserving approach can lead to smoother recoveries and improved patient outcomes.

Expanding Access to Specialized Procedures

As the first hospital in Broward County, we know that early detection and timely treatment are critical to improving patient outcomes. That commitment is reflected in our investment in advanced diagnostic technologies such as the Ion™ Endoluminal System. This platform provides a highly precise, minimally invasive approach to diagnosing lung nodules that are small, deep or difficult to reach using traditional methods. Using a three-dimensional, GPS-like mapping system, pulmonologists can navigate complex airways with exceptional stability and accuracy.

With this technology, Broward Health Medical Center is now the first hospital in Broward County to offer both interventional pulmonology and thoracic surgery services in one location, bringing comprehensive lung cancer care closer to home.

Broward Health is also advancing treatment for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a condition affecting an estimated 83.7 million U.S. adults. Broward Health Imperial Point became the first hospital in Broward County to successfully perform the Inspire V procedure, an innovative therapy for patients with moderate to severe OSA who are unable to tolerate traditional treatments. This therapy has been shown to significantly reduce apnea events while achieving high patient satisfaction and long-term adherence.

Investing in the Future of Patient Care

Together, these investments reflect a broader commitment to reimagining how care is delivered across our system. From earlier diagnosis to less invasive treatment and faster recovery, Broward Health is building a model of care that is not only more advanced, but more responsive to the needs of the communities we serve.

Dr. Evan Boyar is Chief Medical Officer at Broward Health.