Scientists Consider Repurposing Robots for Ebola

Not sure what I think about this. Could work. Could shift the focus in the wrong way. Could further the plan to dehumanize healthcare. Dunno. What say you ATS?

Scientists Consider Repurposing Robots for Ebola

Robotics scientists nationwide are pondering an intriguing possibility: Might robotic technologies deployed in rescue and disaster situations be quickly repurposed to help contain the Ebola epidemic?

A robot that could perform even some of the tasks of a human, such as waste removal or the burial of bodies, would have significant lifesaving potential. So, with the assistance of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, scientists are planning a series of brainstorming meetings. The first round will be held Nov. 7 at four locations: Worcester Polytechnic Institute, in Massachusetts; Texas A&M; the University of California, Berkeley; and in Washington.

The problem, scientists say, is that the technology is still limited when it comes to medicine. While mobile robots now can disarm roadside bombs and drive cars, they are taking only the first tentative steps toward the human levels of dexterity required in health care.

i thought there was an all out epidemic of ebola in america and those robots would be needed to take care of the thousands of ebola patients...

also, why not send those robots to places actually dealing with ebola? i remember the cost was about 100000 per robot, rent them out to countries that need them, they could become the first "robotic"army out fighting to keep people safe.

All that aside, for me it's a mixed bag: on one hand if you could guarantee the dexterity of a human, it would be great:a robot would not get nervous, have the shakes, it would not be concerned with planning anything or be upset because he had an argument with a loved one.
on the other side, a lot of this type of work requires a steady hand, knowledge AND the ability to think outside the box, to make split second decisions and to sometimes bend the rules in order to save someone's life. you hear time and time again of doctors coming up with some improvised solution that ends up saving lives. how could a robot do that?
i remember reading about this guy who had a work accident, almost lost his hand as a result, and in order to keep the hand "alive"for the time necessary to save it, the doctors used leeches...would a robot "think" of doing that?

The perfect system would be a mechanical exoskeleton in medical white/black combined with a video screen for the faceplate. Easy to clean and still have human interaction - I'd imagine it would look like a double size Asimo robot

Personally, I think healthcare requires a human "touch" - A robot cannot offer genuine sympathy, condolence, or respect. Removing those factors from an already depressing/demoralizing pandemic only serves to digress the mission of restoring health and prosperity to those who are suffering.

If these robots work alongside or tandem to people carrying out their jobs, then I could see some added benefit.

But in no way do I see these robots replacing human tasks as anything but a waste of money and a setback to the recovery efforts.

Sofi im on the fence on this one, reason being is that it would defenently help with controlling the spread, problem with that then how do you disenfect the robots safely with out respreading the virus... it can go so many ways i mean they need a power source and also they need humans to adjust and like i said too many possibilities we would need the robots from IROBOT...