WALL-E, meet EVA: 'Robo-doc' navigates on its own, frees doctors to focus on the critically ill

Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, the world's first hospital to introduce a remote-presence robot into its neurological intensive-care unit in 2005, now welcomes the RP-VITA, the first robot able to navigate the hospital on its own.   UCLA staff affectionately dubbed the 5'5", 176-pound robot "EVA," for executive virtual attending physician. Unlike earlier models that physicians steered via a computer-linked joystick, this version drives on auto-pilot, freeing doctors to devote more time to patient care.   "During a stroke, the loss of a few minutes can mean the difference between preserving or losing brain function," said Dr. Paul Vespa, director of neurocritical care at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center and a professor of neurosurgery and neurology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. "This new advance enables me to concentrate on caring for my patients without being distracted by the need to set up and manage its technological features."   With a simple push of an iPad button, Vespa can send the robot gliding down the hall to a patient's room. Equipped with 30 sensors that enable the it to "see" when its route is blocked by a gurney or curious bystander, EVA possesses the intelligence to self-correct and plot a detour to its destination.   After the robot reaches a patient's bedside, Vespa can examine the patient in real time. A two-way video monitor in EVA's "face" enables the patient and doctor to see and hear each other. A 120x zoom capac...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news