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Discussion

Replaced by robots?

If this is a repost I sincerely apologize.

I'm a recent graduate of a public ivy. I got a strong GPA (3.6) at UofM Ann Arbor, and was considering taking the prereqs and going back for my 2nd Degree Accelerated BSN. Not because I can't find a job, because I have one, but to switch career fields. I currently work in marketing. I don't care where in the US I'd have to move to get a job, that's a non-issue. My concern is that the more research that I'm doing the more I'm wondering if nursing is going to be replaced. Maybe not in the near, but in a decade or so down the line.

Does anyone know anything about replacing nurses with robots? Is this happening at any hospitals? This article talks about how robots are being used to cut manning costs or to ease the "nursing shortage." Had I asked this ten years ago, people would have laughed at me and said that this is something out of a sci-fi novel. But I also understand that some practices are cutting unit clerks and replacing them with computers as well.

Has anyone had any contact with these robot nurses and do you think there will be a future for nursing long term? Any help you'd be able to give would be great. I'm looking into careers that help people in need, and nursing was one I'd considered. I was also hoping that I could use nursing to travel and work in developing countries later on. But I'm starting to wonder how feasible that is long term.

Let me know what you think.

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    From skimming the article, it looks like the robot is manipulated by the surgeon to perform the surgery?

    I agree with one of the skeptics in the article: health-care jobs are too complex to be replaced by robots... they are constantly re-evaluating based on what's happening with the patient. Scary if you ask me!

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    • Admin

    Actually, the robot in the article, the Da Vinci, does not replace a nurse. It is more of an additional "team member" and simply allows the surgeon to do the surgery in a different way. There is still a circulating RN, and there is still a PA/NP/RNFA/etc who is scrubbed in at the field and is responsible for changing and attaching the instruments to the robot's arms as the surgeon needs each one. There is also a surg tech or RN scrubbed in at the table who is in charge of the instruments. Where I work, the typical staffing in the OR is surgeon, assistant, instrument (ST or RN), circulator, and anesthesia provider.

    I don't see robots replacing nurses at all. They aren't capable of critical thinking, and would more than likely be solely task oriented. Pt has med ordered? Give med. Example: pt is ordered morphine 2mg q1h for pain. How will the robot be able to assess level of consciousness and determine whether it is safe to give the dose or that the patient may be over-narcotized and need narcan?

    There's also the human interaction angle too. If I were a patient in the hospital, do I want some piece of machinery taking care of me or do I want a living, breathing person who could see that I'm upset and sit down to talk for a minute or two? I'd take option number two in a heart beat.

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    • Author

    Okay, well, I appreciate the responses. This was just an example, I know that there's a lot of development in robotics. If I were to go at this program full throttle, I could leave my current job to go to community college full time to work on prereqs, if everything works out and plays to my favor, I get into nursing school and it takes me 12-16 months to complete under very ideal circumstances.

    I just want to make sure that I'm not wasting two years. Marketing is actually a pretty good field to be in right now, and I didn't want to give it up for something that may not last much longer. As someone who's job it is to stay in the cutting edge in the field, it blows my mind, even in my mid-twenties, how much is different from high school. The amount of time that you have to adapt to new environments is shorter every year.

    If I weren't against moving to any area of the country to get a job, how likely, at this point, do you think I'd be able to get a job right out of BSN school? I heard there's a lot of jobs in North Dakota. Can anyone say, "Don't go into to an accelerated BSN program? The jobs won't be there?" This is a career that I'm not going into for the money, I want to go into it because I want to serve others. I'd honestly not mind going into the military after getting my BSN.

    Also - any additional comments on the robots thing would be totally appreciated.

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    It sounds like the military would be a great option for you! I commend you for doing plenty of research before making a big career move :)

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