The Fourth Industrial Revolution has brought to life the world of science fiction where robots work alongside humans. Whilst we may be accustomed to hearing about robots on the factory floor, they are now being used in almost every industry. One of the areas where robots are making the biggest difference is in healthcare. For example, in the operating theatre, robots have become another pair of hands for surgeons, allowing the human medical professionals to undertake delicate, complicated tasks with improved accuracy.

Over the past year or two, many hospitals around the world have introduced surgical machines that can operate on patients. For instance, da Vinci Si is one of the most advanced computer-assisted surgical systems and the first to be granted the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval. Currently used in hospitals in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), this robot has four arms that can operate cameras and hold miniaturised instruments using a wrist action similar to humans. Meanwhile, the Mayo Clinic – the highest-ranking hospital in the US – uses robots to undertake minimally invasive heart valve surgeries.  

 

 

Robots can also be used in pharmacies, improving the efficiency and accuracy of drug dispensing. The British Wirral University Teaching Hospital reported a 50% reduction in dispensing errors in the four months after implementing a pharmacy robot. Meanwhile, at the Copenhagen University Hospital, robots are used in laboratories to analyse test results. Research shows that these robots were able to deliver 90% of the results within an hour, despite a 20% increase in blood samples.

 

 

The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is another innovation that is driving transformative changes in the healthcare industry. AI-based systems can analyse and identify trends from vast data sets to make accurate diagnoses and thereby reduce the doctor’s decision-making workload. For example, the IDx-DR is an AI platform capable of detecting whether a diabetic patient is likely to lose eyesight by analysing images of their retina and comparing the results against its database.

 

 

AI is also being used to treat Tuberculosis (TB), which kills two million people worldwide annually. Cepheid, a molecular diagnostics company, has developed an AI system capable of assessing chest x-rays and offering rapid laboratory diagnosis of TB symptoms. This technology could potentially save several lives in TB-prevalent countries where radiologists struggle to deal with large number of patients arriving at medical centres with limited facilities.

 

 

AI algorithms can also be used for more critical life-or-death diagnosis. In 2018, healthcare technology firm Viz.ai released a software that analyses brain scans to detect blood vessel blockages caused by strokes. When a blockage is found, the software directly sends an alert to the neurologist on their smartphone, asking for further review of the flagged images. Meanwhile in China, tech giant Tencent has teamed up with London-based healthcare firm Medopad to develop an AI platform that can diagnose Parkinson's Disease in minutes. The AI system scans video footage of patients undertaking motor function assessment, allowing physicians to determine the disease with 90% accuracy. The test can be done using smartphones, eliminating the need for a hospital visit.

 

 

The healthcare industry has evolved rapidly over the course of history, allowing us to treat illnesses and diseases that were once considered to be incurable. Digital technologies that form part of the 4IR landscape has enabled medical professionals to move into a new paradigm, one that has fundamentally revolutionised disease detection, prevention and treatment using machines and data. As robotics and AI continue to drive advancements in healthcare, greater investments in training and education are vital to unlock future innovations at the intersection of medicine and technology.