New York Times seems to think robots can replace "scrub nurses"

Published

:angryfire

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/18/technology/18nurse.html

[snip laudatory BS]

"Meet Penelope," Dr. Treat said, motioning toward a robotic arm poised over a set of surgical tools. "She is one hot little number."

And Penelope is looking for a job.

She is meant to replace the scrub nurse, the person in the operating room who hands the surgeon the tools of surgery. Responding to the ever-widening shortage of nurses in the country, and looking to deal with a problem that frustrated him as a working surgeon, Dr. Treat and his team of tech whizzes are working feverishly to get Penelope ready for her public debut.

New York-Presbyterian Hospital has agreed to test Penelope in March in the operating room on a simple removal of a benign cyst. If all goes well, Dr. Treat dreams of putting a Penelope in every hospital across the country.

"The robot should be able to do everything a nurse can," Dr. Treat said

[snip]

Typically, there are now two human nurses in the operating room, the circulating nurse and the scrub nurse, Dr. Treat said. The circulating nurse can move about the room, but the scrub nurse does not move from the surgeon's shoulder. She is there to do one thing: Get the doctor's tools.

[snip]

"There to do one thing?"

"Do everything a nurse can?"

"Replace the scrub nurse?"

:angryfire :angryfire :angryfire

Letters to the editor, anyone?

Granted, this is neat technology, but would you want Penelope scrubbing on your loved one's operation? I think not! It's inventor and the author of this article seem to lack any clue at all about what the role of a nurse in the O.R. is. It's offensive.

Can the robot retract/suction/etc?

Can the robot react to different stimuli in the environment to see what is going on and anticipate the surgeon's needs?

Can the robot "give me what I need, not what I ask for?"

Can the robot ...

You get the picture.

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Specializes in Utilization Management.

I sent a copy of the article to Sandy Summers at the Center for Nursing Advocacy. If you check the site in a couple of days, I'm pretty sure there'll be an organized letter-writing campaign about this article.

http://www.nursingadvocacy.org/news/news.html

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God bless'em.

We tried Aesop for a little while to hold laprascopic cameras, but he/she/it required too much respect, not to mention precise ennunciation, for a surgeon with places to be to be bothered with. And there was simply no satisfaction to be had from swearing at it either...

Will we need more theatre nurses to prepare Penny? Who will factor in all the potential complications for each surgery? Will Penny believe what her creator, Lord and Master says? Or, disillusioned, evolve into the Terminator scenario...

Somehow - call me a Luddite - I don't think so dearies. Perhaps they'd be better off working on motorised walking frames and ceiling harness' so I may be kept working, as our illustrious treasurer Mr Costello desires, into my 70's.

Humanity: where the rising ape meets the falling angel

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Can't help thinking of what an angry surgeon said one day...."A chimpanzee could be trained to work in the OR........." None of the OR nurses or techs ever forgot that comment!! If he ever had a complaint they'd say "Let him get a chimp!!"

:angryfire

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/18/technology/18nurse.html

[snip laudatory BS]

"Meet Penelope," Dr. Treat said, motioning toward a robotic arm poised over a set of surgical tools. "She is one hot little number."

And Penelope is looking for a job.

She is meant to replace the scrub nurse, the person in the operating room who hands the surgeon the tools of surgery. Responding to the ever-widening shortage of nurses in the country, and looking to deal with a problem that frustrated him as a working surgeon, Dr. Treat and his team of tech whizzes are working feverishly to get Penelope ready for her public debut.

New York-Presbyterian Hospital has agreed to test Penelope in March in the operating room on a simple removal of a benign cyst. If all goes well, Dr. Treat dreams of putting a Penelope in every hospital across the country.

"The robot should be able to do everything a nurse can," Dr. Treat said

[snip]

Typically, there are now two human nurses in the operating room, the circulating nurse and the scrub nurse, Dr. Treat said. The circulating nurse can move about the room, but the scrub nurse does not move from the surgeon's shoulder. She is there to do one thing: Get the doctor's tools.

[snip]

"There to do one thing?"

"Do everything a nurse can?"

"Replace the scrub nurse?"

:angryfire :angryfire :angryfire

Letters to the editor, anyone?

Granted, this is neat technology, but would you want Penelope scrubbing on your loved one's operation? I think not! It's inventor and the author of this article seem to lack any clue at all about what the role of a nurse in the O.R. is. It's offensive.

Can the robot retract/suction/etc?

Can the robot react to different stimuli in the environment to see what is going on and anticipate the surgeon's needs?

Can the robot "give me what I need, not what I ask for?"

Can the robot ...

You get the picture.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

I'm sure part of the robot's programming will be it's ability to articulate, "DANGER! DANGER, DR. ROBINSON! YOU HAVE JUST SEVERED A MAJOR ARTYERY. DANGER!", or, "DAVE. I HAVE EVERY CONFIDENCE IN THIS PROCEDURE, BUT I PREDICT A FAILURE IN THE PATIENT"S CARDIAC MODULE IN THREE HOUR'S. SHALL WE REPLACE IT NOW?".

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