Earlier this week, one of my daredevil sons had a medical emergency and was taken into a small local hospital. Rural hospitals don’t always have enough doctors on call to handle every situation as quickly as the crisis requires and they are turning to robot doctors.
From a remote location, even from home, a physician uses a laptop and joystick to guide the robot to the patient’s bedside, review medical chart information and speak with patients and nurses. Through a widescreen, two-way TV monitor, the doctor communicates with the patient and nurse face to face to determine the appropriate and immediate care needed. The ability to address patient care on a moment’s notice is especially helpful for treating acute stroke patients.
…The robots do not replace physicians seeing patients in person. Instead, they supplement physician visits for those times when they cannot be present, especially during the overnight shifts.
A robot doctor, operated by a physician 150 miles away, was the first at hand to help my son, Alex, and admit him into the ICU and order the necessary procedures to save his life. These last few days Alex has received care from human doctors who were able to continue the treatment begun via a computer link.
Happily, Alex is much improved and will transfer out of ICU today and be home with his family very soon.
