When robotics enters hospitals

30 January 2019 | Written by La redazione

In the last days the nursing robots R1 and Pepper have been protagonists of the national news, but they are not the only machines to “work” in hospitals

“Robot in the ward”. It could be the title of a new medical drama Grey’s Anatomy style, but it is a reality that we could meet more and more often in the hospitals of the world. And something is moving in Italy too. Just this week the two humanoid robots equipped with artificial intelligence R1 and Pepper, who will start a “trial period” at the “Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza” in San Giovanni Rotondo, were the protagonists of the national news. These new “nurses”, that will help doctors in diagnosis and patient care, however, are not the only machines that operate in the wards of hospitals or in healthcare.

Assistance for the elderly and disabled. Improving the quality of life and the independence of people: this is the goal of collaborative robotics, which is preparing to substantially

change the care sector, with a particular focus on the elderly and the disabled. These innovations, which are about to enter both in private homes and in care facilities, will not only change the lives of patients but also that of their families, with significant savings also in economic terms. In Italy, the Tuscany Region through the European funds of the POR FESR Toscana 2014-2020 call, has launched the CloudIa project, realized by a consortium that brings together seven organizations that operate both at an academic and social level. Thanks to the project and the relationship between robot and cloud, night-time monitoring services will be developed with environmental sensors, cognitive stimulation and psychophysical patient monitoring. Robots in surgery. It was 1999 when Intuitive Surgical Inc. introduced the first robotic surgical system called Da Vinci, in honor of the Italian scientist. If in the United States by now the vast majority of interventions take place with the help of robots, even Italy defends itself quite well: in 2018 surgical robots in Italy exceeded 100 units and this innovation is now present throughout the national territory, with our country confirming its position at the top in Europe for the diffusion and use of this technology. But the research is going further: it is working to teach machines to operate independently, obviously always under the supervision of the doctor in the flesh. The nanobots. But the robots in medicine have different sizes and shapes: from large surgery machines to the small size of the “assistants”, up to the microscopic ones of the nanobots, which allow a non-invasive therapeutic approach. These devices are injected into our body and are programmed to repair damaged organs and tissues, block infections, clear the arteries to prevent strokes or heart attacks. The results of the first experiments are encouraging and the uses are moving towards two distinct paths: early detection and targeted drug delivery. Rehabilitation robotics. The last branch of robotics that must be mentioned in reference to medicine, is that linked to rehabilitation. The use of these innovations makes it possible to return to an almost normal life even after traumas and disabling diseases. With these physiotherapist robots, for example, it is possible to re-educate the limbs to the movement and face injuries never treated without the aid of technology.