From assisting surgeries, disinfecting rooms, dispensing medication and several other tasks in healthcare sector, robots have played a significant role. Read on to know more…
Robots are deployed in every sector and assisting surgeries, disinfecting rooms, dispensing medication and several other tasks in healthcare sector — they are changing healthcare Industry. Robots in healthcare assist in relieving medical personnel from routine tasks, that take their time away from more pressing responsibilities, and by making medical procedures safer and less costly for patients. They can also perform accurate surgery in tiny places and transport dangerous substances.
Robotic Utilities
Robots can not only undertake monotonous and repetitive tasks, but also those that are potentially dangerous for humans — such as moving heavy boxes or testing solutions. Robotic medical assistants monitor patient vital statistics and alert the nurses when there is a need for a human presence in the room, allowing nurses to monitor several patients at once. These robotic assistants also automatically enter information into the patient electronic health record. Robotic carts may be seen moving through hospital corridors carrying supplies. Robots are also assisting in surgery, allowing doctors to conduct surgery through as tiny incision instead of an inches-long incision. Robotics is making a big impact in other areas of medicine, as well.
Robotics in healthcare means so much more than drawing blood or carrying around racks. With remote-controlled medical robots, such as the ones developed by Anybots, caretakers can interact with their patients, check on their living conditions and the need for further appointments. This would help efficiency a great deal by eliminating time-consuming home visits.
The real power of AI, claim InData Labs experts, lies in detecting patterns that describe various conditions by studying healthcare records and other data. The machine can scan thousands of cases and look for correlations between hundreds of variables, some of which are not even listed in current medical works.
Beyond robots that could be placed in situations potentially harmful for humans, robotics could have a big impact on pharmaceutical distribution chains, too. Robotic medical dispenser systems, medication management solutions such as the PharmASSIST ROBOTx help any given facility “right-size” its system for its volume. It is also an emerging best practice that these robots are designed with robust data mining capabilities, so pharmacies can gain valuable insights about their traffic and efficiency all the time.
Robotic personal assistants can be built to look friendly and the Japanese have taken the lead on this front. One of their machines, called Paro, responds to human speech and looks like a decidedly non-threatening baby seal. Other robotic technology is humanoid and used for help with personal care, socialization and for training. One used in training emergency personnel to respond to trauma, for instance, looks like a victim who screams, bleeds and even responds to treatment.
The Road Ahead
The tricky question for robotics in healthcare Industry is whether they will take jobs away from humans. There are several reasons why the machines will not replace their human counterparts. Even though the technology is expensive and some of it is years from being implemented, the use of robots is changing healthcare and — in ways we can only imagine — will continue to do so.
