Your doctor may soon turn into a robot, or so the whispers warn. Sound like something out of a bad sci-fi movie? Well, maybe you should ask the clinician to appear on the screen of the InTouch Technologies RP-7 Remote Presence Robotic System, a maneuverable robotic system designed to allow clinicians to videoconference with their patients from remote locations.
Dr. Alex Gandsas, from Sinai Hospital in Baltimore and a stock option holder with InTouch Technologies, introduced the machine to hospital administrators as a way to closely monitor patients after weight loss surgeries in which He specializes. Since its introduction, the length of stay of its patients has been shorter. In Gandsas’ study published earlier this month in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, 92 of 376 patients had additional robotic visits, and all 92 of them were medically cleared to return home faster than those who did not receive controls. with the teleconferencing system. Shorter patient stays would be a welcome change for hospitals, health insurance companies, and patients alike, all of whom have a keen interest in sending patients home faster.
While physicians who do not have a financial interest in the technology should undoubtedly conduct more studies, these preliminary results are promising. Gandsas did not use robotic visits to replace his personal records with patients, only to augment them. Neither InTouch Technologies nor Dr. Gandsas envision the “Bari”, or as it is known, as a complete replacement for personal visits with healthcare professionals. Instead, the joystick-controlled system, which employs cameras, a video screen, and a microphone, is intended to complement traditional physician visits and allow patients and healthcare workers to receive advice from qualified physicians and specialists when otherwise it would be impossible. Doctors will soon be able to provide their patients with additional daily check-ups and answer questions much faster, all while sitting in their own homes or while out of the area.
However, Sinai Hospital is not the only one with this technology. In fact, robots have been used for some time to help with patient care, including guiding stroke patients through therapy and helping them play video games. Many prosthetic devices are now at least partially robotic, and if it weren’t for a certain amount of robotic technology, the public would not be able to communicate with such great minds as Steven Hawkins.
Johns Hopkins also has a robotic teleconferencing system to help communicate with patients who need a translator when one is not available in the hospital itself. The use of such technology could have tremendously positive effects on the Texas healthcare system, particularly in Dallas, Houston and Austin, which handles large volumes of non-English speaking patients. Lack of proper communication is a major obstacle to receiving quality health care for many immigrants in Texas. The lack of quality healthcare, in turn, can lead to serious public health problems, including the transmission of communicable diseases.
Approximately 120 RP-7 remote presence robotic systems are currently in use worldwide, with plans to implement many more in the coming years. China is already using similar systems to help deal with the lack of healthcare in inaccessible rural areas.
Dr. Louis Kavoussi, chair of the department of urology at the North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System, took a particular interest in this new trend and conducted a study to monitor the effect of technology on patient care. The study did not show a decrease in patient satisfaction or an increase in complications due to teleconference visits. The technology, Kavoussi said, is “rudimentary” actually compared to other systems in development. The need for fear is minimal.
There are relatively few InTouch Technologies systems available and further studies have yet to be done. However, if robotic teleconferencing is used to complement personal physician visits, it has the potential to dramatically improve many aspects of healthcare, from how quickly patient questions are answered, to how many visits, in total, they receive, up to whether or not rural residents receive adequate care, to how well (or even whether) they are provided with a translator to explain their symptoms. States like Texas, in particular, with a shortage of physicians and a large volume of non-English speaking patients, will benefit. So maybe robots in hospitals are not something one should fear. In fact, they may even end your unpleasant stay a few days faster.
Knowing medical technology is an important part of your health care. How you take care of yourself will certainly affect you as you age and eventually your wallet as well.
