KANE International Travelling Scholarship
Department of Surgery, Section of Pediatric Urology
Comer Children’s Hospital, The University of Chicago Medicine
Observer: Dr. Ayushi Vig
Host & Mentor: Prof. Mohan S. Gundeti

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Dr. Mohan S. Gundeti Sir for giving me the opportunity to observe his work and learn from his team at Comer Children’s Hospital. I am also grateful to the KANE Scholarship board for supporting this observership. The exposure I received during this month was incredible, and the insights I am bringing back will directly help me improve patient care and refine my approach to pediatric urology at my home institution in India.

Operating Room Exposure & Surgical Insights

The surgical experience during this observership was exceptional. Watching Dr. Gundeti operate in the robotic OR was a masterclass in surgical precision, handling tissue delicately, and maintaining complete control throughout complex reconstructions.

Some of the key procedures I observed included:

Robotic Bladder Augmentation & Robotic Mitrofanoff Channel Creation: These are complex, rare reconstructive procedures that aren’t performed frequently in most centers worldwide. Having never seen a robotic bladder augmentation or Mitrofanoff before, watching these cases step-by-step was a huge learning milestone for me.

Robotic Pyeloplasty & Ureteric Reimplantations: Seeing the nuances of port placement, precise dissection, and seamless intracorporeal suturing in delicate pediatric anatomy gave me a much clearer practical understanding of upper and lower tract reconstructions.

One thing I particularly valued was being able to follow these complex surgical patients through their entire stay—from their initial admission and preoperative prep, to the OR, and through their daily ward rounds until discharge.

Simulation & Wet Lab Experience

Beyond observing in the OR, I had plenty of opportunity to work on technical skills:

Robotic Simulator Console: We had ample time on the robotic simulation consoles, which let me practice dissection and suturing dynamics on different modules.

Wet Lab & Mini-Fellowship Course: During my tenure, the department hosted a Mini-Fellowship Robotic Course. We had the opportunity to join the mini-fellows at the Surgical Innovation Training Laboratory (SITL) for the wet lab. Practicing reconstructive techniques and tissue handling under guidance—and interacting with visiting faculty—made it a fantastic hands-on learning day.

Clinical OPD & Diagnostics at Comer Children’s

The outpatient clinics at Comer Children’s Hospital were fast-paced and packed with clinical learning.

We saw a broad range of pediatric urology cases, including neurogenic bladders, high-grade vesicoureteric reflux (VUR), and posterior urethral valves (PUV).

We spent time in the Urodynamic Studies (UDS) lab, where we went over UDS tracings, setup, and interpretation for neuropathic bladder management.

Dr. Gundeti made the clinic sessions very interactive through regular case discussions, teaching points, and quizzing based on the latest evidence and articles.

Shriners Children’s Hospital Visit

I also accompanied Dr. Gundeti for an outreach clinical day at Shriners Children’s Hospital. We ran a busy clinic seeing about 15 to 20 patients with complex pediatric urology and neuro-urologic conditions. It was great to see how high-volume specialized care and multidisciplinary follow-up are coordinated in a different setup.

Outside the hospital, the warmth shown by Dr. Gundeti and his family made a lasting impression. Dr. Gundeti and Mrs. Lalitha Gundeti ma’am opened their home to us and hosted a wonderful, delicious homemade dinner. Their hospitality made us feel completely at home in Chicago. Seeing Dr. Gundeti lead by example—not just in the OR and clinic, but also in maintaining health and personal balance—was truly inspiring. This observership was a deeply rewarding experience both professionally and personally, and it is something I will cherish throughout my career.

Thank You!
Dr Ayushi Vig
Assistant professor
Department of Pediatric surgery
Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences, Lucknow, India.

Kane International Traveling Scholarship – Testimonial

Receiving the Kane International Traveling Scholarship and having the opportunity to spend a month at the University of Chicago has been one of the most enriching experiences of my professional career.

During my observership, I had the privilege of witnessing complex pediatric urological procedures and gaining a deeper understanding of advanced robotic surgery. The surgical experience at the University of Chicago is truly outstanding. I was exposed to highly complex reconstructive procedures, including robotic bladder augmentation, Mitrofanoff appendicovesicostomy, bladder neck reconstruction, and other advanced pediatric urological surgeries. Beyond observing the procedures themselves, I had the opportunity to understand the reasoning behind each surgical decision, the technical details of the reconstruction, and the importance of careful patient selection and multidisciplinary care.

What made this experience particularly valuable was the opportunity to learn directly from Dr. Mohan Gundeti. His generosity in sharing his knowledge, his openness to discussion, and the time he dedicates to teaching are remarkable. He is not only an exceptional surgeon, but also an outstanding physician who combines technical excellence with compassion, dedication, humility, and genuine concern for his patients and their families.

Dr. Gundeti represents, in my view, an example of how the medical profession should be practiced. His commitment to continuous learning, innovation, education, and patient-centered care goes far beyond the operating room. Observing the way he interacts with patients, trainees, colleagues, and the entire healthcare team was as valuable to me as learning his surgical techniques.

Beyond the professional and academic experience, I was deeply touched by Dr. Gundeti’s hospitality and generosity. He and his family welcomed us into their home with extraordinary warmth and kindness, creating an atmosphere that made us feel truly welcome and part of their family. His wife, in particular, was exceptionally warm and thoughtful, and we were fortunate to have the opportunity to meet his parents as well. These moments outside the hospital were an important part of the experience and allowed me to appreciate the person behind the physician and mentor. They also made this experience feel much more personal and meaningful.

I was equally grateful for the opportunity to become part of the pediatric urology team. From the beginning, I felt welcomed and included, not only in the clinical and academic activities but also in the everyday life of the team. I had the opportunity to develop genuine friendships, particularly with Dr. Priyank Yadav, who was extraordinarily generous with his time, knowledge, and kindness throughout my stay. Beyond the hospital, we even had the opportunity to go cycling together, which was a wonderful way to get to know each other outside the clinical environment. These personal connections were an unexpected and invaluable part of my experience and are relationships that I hope will continue well beyond the end of my observership.

I also had the opportunity to visit Shriners Children’s Hospital on two occasions. The experience was particularly enriching, as Shriners is a remarkable institution founded on a philanthropic mission to provide comprehensive care to children with complex conditions, including spina bifida. I was impressed not only by the high standards of clinical care, but also by the comprehensive and multidisciplinary approach to these patients. I had the opportunity to observe the management of several complex and interesting cases, gaining valuable insights that complemented my experience at the University of Chicago. Visiting Shriners reinforced for me the importance of combining surgical excellence with comprehensive, coordinated, and compassionate care for children with complex urological conditions.

The University of Chicago also offers an extraordinary environment for academic and surgical development. The complexity and diversity of the cases, the multidisciplinary approach, the quality of the team, and the integration of technology into pediatric urology provide an exceptional setting for learning. This experience allowed me not only to acquire new technical knowledge, but also to reflect on how these advances can be adapted to different healthcare settings.

One of the most important outcomes of this experience is that I return to Chile with concrete perspectives and renewed motivation to further develop complex minimally invasive and robotic pediatric urological surgery in my own institution. I hope to translate what I have learned into improved surgical care for children in Chile and to contribute to the development and expansion of robotic pediatric urology in our country.

I am deeply grateful to the Kane Foundation and to the University of Chicago for making this experience possible, and particularly to Dr. Mohan Gundeti for his generosity, mentorship, and trust. This observership has been much more than a surgical training experience; it has been an opportunity for professional growth, intellectual inspiration, and personal enrichment that I will carry with me throughout my career.

My Experience as a Kane Scholar at the University of Chicago – Yu-Chen Chen (Taiwan)

I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to visit the University of Chicago as a recipient of the Kane International Scholarship and to spend unforgettable weeks with Dr. Mohan S. Gundeti and the Pediatric Urology team at Comer Children’s Hospital. This experience was much more than an observership. It was an opportunity to immerse myself in a different clinical environment, learn from an outstanding pediatric urology team, and reflect on how we can continuously improve the care we provide to children and their families.

Throughout the observership, I had the privilege of participating in the daily clinical activities of the pediatric urology service, including outpatient clinics, case discussions, imaging review, perioperative care, and the operating room. I was particularly impressed by how every patient encounter became an opportunity for teaching. Rather than focusing only on the technical aspects of a procedure, Dr. Gundeti consistently encouraged us to understand the rationale behind each decision: Why this operation? Why this approach? What is the long-term goal for this child?

The operating room experience was one of the highlights of my visit. I observed a wide spectrum of complex pediatric reconstructive procedures, both robotic and open, including a robotic heminephrectomy in a 7-month-old infant with a duplicated collecting system, hydronephrosis, and megaureter, robotic ureteral reimplantation, robotic pyeloplasty, robotic augmentation cystoplasty with Mitrofanoff appendicovesicostomy, as well as hypospadias repair. Observing these procedures across different ages and levels of complexity reinforced for me that pediatric urologic reconstruction is never simply about correcting anatomy. Every surgical decision must take into consideration urinary function, future growth, long-term outcomes, and the quality of life of both the child and family.

I was also fortunate that my observership coincided with the Robotic Mini-Fellowship, which provided an additional opportunity to experience an intensive and structured approach to pediatric robotic surgery training. Beyond observing surgical techniques, I was deeply grateful for the opportunity to perform robotic surgery in a porcine model and to receive step-by-step guidance from Dr. Mohan Gundeti on the technical principles and surgical sequence of robotic ureteral reimplantation. His detailed teaching—from tissue handling and dissection to suturing and reconstruction—allowed me to better understand not only how each step is performed, but also the rationale behind it.

This hands-on experience was one of the most valuable parts of my time in Chicago. I was particularly impressed by the educational system surrounding robotic surgery, including case selection, preoperative planning, simulation, stepwise skill development, team communication, and detailed intraoperative teaching. It gave me a much deeper appreciation of how structured robotic training can translate surgical knowledge into reproducible skills, and provided many ideas that I hope to incorporate into surgical education and team training when I return to Taiwan.

Another aspect that made this experience particularly meaningful was the openness of Dr. Gundeti and his team. Questions were always welcomed, and clinical discussions extended beyond “how” an operation was performed to “why” a particular strategy was chosen. These conversations allowed me to compare different approaches with my own clinical practice in Taiwan and helped me organize what I observed into concepts that I can bring back to my patients, colleagues, and trainees.

What impressed me most was Dr. Gundeti’s philosophy of mentorship. His enthusiasm for pediatric urology, innovation, robotic surgery, research, and education was evident throughout the entire visit. At the same time, he showed that excellent surgery is only one component of caring for a child. The importance of communication with families, multidisciplinary teamwork, long-term follow-up, and continuously questioning how we can achieve a better outcome were equally emphasized.

My learning process during these two weeks can perhaps be summarized in four words: observe, ask, organize, and translate. I observed how another leading center approaches pediatric urologic problems; I asked questions about the reasoning behind clinical and surgical decisions; I organized these observations within my own experience; and, most importantly, I began to think about how these lessons can be translated into better care, education, and surgical training back home.

The experience also reminded me why international scholarship programs such as the Kane Scholarship are so valuable. Overseas training is not simply another line on a curriculum vitae. Its true value lies in bringing home a new perspective—one that can influence our patients, our teams, our trainees, and ultimately the development of our field.

I would like to express my sincere appreciation to the Kane Scholarship Program, the University of Chicago Department of Urology, Comer Children’s Hospital, Dr. Mohan S. Gundeti, and the entire Pediatric Urology team for their generosity, mentorship, and warm hospitality. I am also grateful to all the mentors and senior colleagues who helped make this opportunity possible.

Chicago gave me many wonderful memories, but the most important things I bring home are not photographs or surgical observations. They are new ways of thinking, new standards to aspire to, and renewed motivation to continue growing as a pediatric urologist, surgeon, teacher, and researcher.

I sincerely hope that the relationships and collaborations developed during this experience will continue well beyond these two weeks.

Yu-Chen Chen, MD, PhD
Department of Urology, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital,
Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan

Sharing the experience in Taiwan

It was a great honor to share my Kane Scholarship experience at the University of Chicago at the Taiwan Urological Association Annual Meeting on August 23, 2026 at Taipei, Taiwan.

Memories and thanks

I am sincerely grateful to Dr. Mohan Gundeti, Dr. Priyank, Anastasia, Andrea, and Dr. Alex for their warm hospitality, thoughtful mentorship, and generous support throughout my stay in Chicago. These two weeks were filled with invaluable learning experiences, wonderful memories, and meaningful friendships.

My heartfelt thanks also go to my two fellow Kane Scholars, Dr. Ayushi Vig from India and Dr. Maria Solange Figueroa from Chile, and Robotic Mini-follow Dr. Remash Babu, Dr. Sharon and Dr. Bilal, for sharing this journey with me. Learning together, exchanging experiences from our different backgrounds, and supporting one another made these two weeks even more special.

Thank you, Dr. Gundeti and the entire Pediatric Urology team at the University of Chicago, for making my Kane Scholarship experience so memorable, inspiring, and truly unforgettable.