4 minute read
technology gives doctors quicker access to patients
FACTOR Methodist is the first in Houston to use Wow this wireless robotic technology to help provide 24/7coverage for patients.
BY GALE SMITH
After Michael Shea underwent emergency surgery at The Methodist Hospital for bleedingin his brain, he was recovering in the hospital’s neurosurgical intensive care unit (NICU) when, in the middle of the night, Dr. Saleem Zaidi arrived for a visit. Zaidi, neurointensivist director in the NICU, wasn’t physically in the same room. In fact, he wasn’t even in NICU. Zaidi was several miles away from Methodist, in his home, checking on his patient by way of a nearly six-foot-tall, remote-controlled mobile robot, nicknamed ROHAS (Remote Operated Health Assessment System). “I didn’t know where Dr. Zaidi was physically, but I appreciated him looking in on me personally in the middle of the night,” said Shea, an engineer at
McDermott International. “It certainly had the wow factor.” ROHAS is one of two robotic “doctors” on staff at Methodist since the summer of 2006, caring for critically ill patients suffering from stroke and other neurological problems.
“In Mr. Shea’s case, I wanted to check on his condition even though I couldn’t be there physically,” Zaidi said. “The remote presence technology allowed me to see him and the ICU nurses and staff, and talk with them face to face. Ultimately, it impacts how we’re able to provide quality treatment.”
n the other side of the hospital, in the Methodist Neurological Institute’s Eddy Scurlock Stroke Center, Dr. James Ling, neurologist and stroke physician, uses MURDOC (Mobile Unit Robot Doctor) to help care for patients in the 18-bed stroke unit. Physicians, nurses, staff, patients and family members are used to seeing Ling effortlessly maneuver MURDOC down the hallways and into patients’ rooms. With the help of his nurse practitioner, Ling can run neurological tests and check patients’ reflexes following a stroke.
Between the two mobile robots, this remote presence technology elevates the quality of patient care at Methodist to a new level. The blue and black robots travel up to 2 mph, can be steered easily down a hallway or alongside a patient bed, and are equipped with infrared sensors to prevent the robot from accidentally bumping into anything or anyone. Most importantly, the robots allow physicians, patients, nurses and other staff to “virtually” interact and talk at a moment’s notice.
From a remote location, Zaidi, Ling and other physicians use a laptop and joystick to guide the robot to patients’ bedsides,review medical chart information and speak with patients, nurses and family members. Through a widescreen, two-way TV monitor, they can communicate with each other to determine the appropriate and immediate care needed.
Physicians can take digital photos or video of the patient and save them to the patient’s electronic medical record for future viewing. They also can load an image onto the robot’s TV monitor and explain a patient’s condition to loved ones. The ability to address patient care at a moment’s notice is especially helpful for treating acute stroke patients.
O
“This robotic technology gives us quicker access to the patients, and timeliness is everything in helping a stroke patient recover effectively,” according to Ling. “Our prime window of opportunity is within three hours of the onset of stroke symptoms, and as we tell our patients, time is brain.”
Dr. James Ling
ethodist’s NICU and Eddy Scurlock Stroke Center are the first in Houston to use this wireless robotic technology to help provide 24/7 coverage for patients, giving them immediate access to a physician. The remote presence technology is part of a larger patient safety and quality initiative within The Methodist Hospital System.
“The robots are not meant to replace physicians seeing patients at the bedside,” said Dr. Marc Boom, executive vice president at The Methodist Hospital. “Instead, this technology supplements physician visits during those times when they cannot be physically present.”
Methodist received a major grant from the William Randolph Hearst Foundation for this robotic technology. The goal is to expand this technology to other locations within
“This technology supplements physician visits during M the hospital and throughout the hospital system. those times when they cannot be physically present.” For Shea and his daughter, who has worked on artificial intelligence projects, the technology is a blessing. “It’s hard to quantify the subtleties, but it’s definitely better than just a phone call or an e-mail from my doctor,” he said. “The quality of care here is unique.” Members of the Eddy Scurlock Stroke Team: nurse practitioner Don Bledsoe, Dr. Ken Ling and nurse practitioner Delmar Imperial-Aubin.
