RAPID CITY, S.D. – Monument Health opened a new vascular hybrid operating room at Rapid City Hospital in July 2026. It combines the sterile environment of a traditional surgical suite with advanced, high-resolution imaging. Surgeons can perform complex minimally invasive endovascular procedures and open surgeries in the same space without moving the patient. That capability matters for high-risk cases, where a quick transition from one approach to another can directly affect outcomes.
Vascular and Cardiothoracic surgeon Tommaso Cambiaghi, M.D., will serve as the primary surgeon in this space. Dr. Cambiaghi has brought procedures to the community that have not previously been available here, including complex aortic aneurysm repair using endovascular techniques, peripheral vascular interventions, and complex structural heart procedures that previously required coordination across separate operating room and cath lab settings. The room’s imaging also makes possible fenestrated and branched endografts, complex limb salvage interventions, and hybrid endo-open cardiac surgery that could not be efficiently performed in a standard cath lab or conventional operating room.
For many patients, the difference is significant. Traditional open repair of aortic aneurysms can require operations lasting several hours followed by a difficult and long recovery. In the hybrid room, surgeons can guide devices through blood vessels accessed at the groin, elbow or wrist while viewing live images, avoiding large incisions. The team can move to open surgery immediately if needed, with anesthesia and heart-lung bypass equipment readily available in the room. Patients who needed these repairs previously had to travel to centers such as Denver or Minneapolis, both for the procedure and for the regular follow-up imaging that aortic repairs required.
“The most rewarding thing about this job is that we get to help people who would have otherwise had no option but traveling five or six hours,” said Dr. Cambiaghi. “That is true not only for the procedure itself, but also for all of the follow-ups, which are very important to do periodically. Even in a place people think of as a small town with a smaller hospital, we are able to deliver these complex procedures. This is not a one-man show. Surgery is a team effort, from the anesthesiologists and nurses to the technicians and everyone who cares for patients before and after.”
“The Heart and Vascular Institute continues to grow, and this room reflects our commitment to building a team that can meet the most complex needs of our patients,” said Joseph Tuma, M.D., FACC, FSCAI, Executive Medical Director of the Monument Health Heart and Vascular Institute. “Families across western South Dakota and eastern Wyoming can now receive advanced cardiovascular care close to home, near the people who support them.”
The hybrid operating room is a meaningful expansion of what Monument Health can offer patients who need the most complex vascular care, and it positions the program for continued growth.
About Monument Health
Headquartered in Rapid City, S.D., Monument Health is a community-based health care system with a mission to make a difference, every day. The system offers care in 31 medical specialties and serves 14 communities across western South Dakota and in eastern Wyoming. With over 6,300 physicians and caregivers, Monument Health is composed of 5 hospitals and more than 40 medical clinics and specialty centers. Monument Health is a member of the Mayo Clinic Care Network.
###