Gronau, 25 February 2026. This week marks a very special anniversary at St. Antonius Hospital in Gronau. Twenty years ago, the hospital performed its first operation using the newly acquired da Vinci surgical system. The first ‘robot-assisted radical prostatectomy’ – i.e. the removal of the prostate with the aid of the robot – was performed under the direction of the then chief physician Dr Jörn H. Witt and was accompanied by Prof. P. Wiklund, an expert who had travelled from Stockholm especially for the occasion.
As part of the 125th anniversary of St. Antonius Hospital in Gronau, which is being celebrated this year, this is another significant milestone for the hospital. One person who has helped shape this development from the very beginning is Jeannette ter Horst Hill. ‘The first da Vinci operation was an exciting and fascinating experience for all of us,’ recalls the surgical nurse, who still works in the operating theatre at St. Antonius Hospital in Gronau.
In recognition of her many years of commitment, Chief Physician Dr Christian Wagner presented her with a bouquet of flowers and a personal gift: a sweet thank you for 20 years of enthusiasm and team spirit in the form of appropriately designed themed cakes for her and the entire surgical team.
In Europe, only a few hospitals can look back on such long and extensive experience in robotic surgery. To date, more than 26,000 robot-assisted surgeries have been performed in Gronau, including more than 24,000 prostate removals. In October 2025, St. Antonius Hospital Gronau became the first hospital in Europe to use the latest development in da Vinci technology, the da Vinci 5.
