Patient Stories

Riki Waugh

As a child, Riki Waugh and her family moved constantly. She attended 13 different schools before reaching high school. What she remembers most is not how often they moved, but the visits she and her mother made to model homes. "That's what has driven me in my career. I've always wanted to build custom homes - home is where the heart is and it's where you feel protected," says Riki, who was the first woman in the Valley hired to train as a trim carpenter. Today, she is running the day-to-day operations of her family's electrical manufacturing company. "I'm learning how to run a business so one day I can run my own."

In October 2002, even home would not provide comfort for Riki. She had known for several years that she had a heart murmur, but it had finally grown into its real entity - mitral valve prolapse. Her condition progressed rapidly. "I could not understand how my body compensated for so long. It finally struck me that I was on borrowed time."

With a six-month window before surgery was necessary, she launched a nationwide search for the options, and surgeons, available to her. Her search led her directly to the da Vinci Surgical System. "I found a cardiovascular surgeon in New York who was conducting research on using the robot specifically for mitral valve prolapse. I was contemplating going out of state to have the procedure done," she recalls. Little did she know, the da Vinci was literally in her own back yard.

Extensive research finally led Riki to the surgical robot and the cardiovascular surgeon behind it, Dr. Joseph Auteri, at Scottsdale Healthcare. She arranged for an appointment to interview Dr. Auteri, as well as to learn more about her options. "Dr. Auteri answered questions on my list before I had a chance to ask them," Riki recalls. The interview was lucrative - Riki learned more about the da Vinci Surgical System, which, at the time was awaiting approval by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in mitral valve surgery. "Right then and there, I told Dr. Auteri he was going to be my surgeon no matter what," she says.

With her April deadline looming, Riki anxiously awaited Dr. Auteri's call to update her on where the da Vinci Surgical System stood with FDA approval. Three months went by, and finally in February 2004, Dr. Auteri called with the news. "He said he needed a month to train with another surgeon at the University of Southern California," recalls Riki. "The surgeon he trained with is one of the best in the country. I felt I was in good hands."

On March 20, 2004, Riki became the second patient in the Valley to undergo mitral valve surgery using the da Vinci Surgical System. With no damage done to her heart and after less than six days in the hospital, Riki was released into the care of her friends and family. "My recovery was outstanding. I had a little discomfort but absolutely no pain whatsoever," she says.

She constantly touts robotic surgery to everyone she meets, and given her situation, Riki strongly urges others to conduct extensive research before making a decision. "Everyone needs to review all of the options available to them. It's up to you to gather the knowledge and use it to make an informed decision about which option, and which type of surgery, will be best for you."

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