The elderly will account for 16 percent of the global population by the year 2050. That means that approximately 1.5 billion people will be above the age of 65 (Lutz et al., 2008). However, caring for this group can be emotionally, mentally, and physically challenging. Experts note that there is set to be a shortage of professionals that are trained and willing to take care of the elderly. The society has to find more resources and new ways to be able to deliver resources and quality of care. Robots have the potential to meet most of the needs of the aging population. The advancement of robots in the current society has seen them perform almost any type of activity.
Impact on business
The use of robots for elderly care should see an annual boost in revenues for several healthcare robotics companies in the near future. One country that has spearheaded the use and applications of robots is Japan. The countries Trade and Industry expects that the robotics service industry to grow up to $4 billion annually by the year 2035. Such a boost will be 25 times the current level of growth (Hosseini and Goher, 2017). A small percentage of the growth in the application in robotics will be applied in elderly care. As Europe and the United States face a decrease in qualified human caretakers, the development of healthcare robots for the elderly should see a boost in these economies. Japan is accelerating in the development and adoption of elderly care robots to ensure that they are fully functional and applied in the near future.
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The use of elder care robots will also allow providers to offer health care services at low costs. A large amount of the current plan for elder care goes to the caregiver and the healthcare personnel. The introduction of robots could enable a 65% reduction in the cost of human labor every year (Hosseini, 2017). Additionally, elder care robots will mean that patients will no longer have to go to elder care facilities that charge premium costs. The elderly can opt to stay at home and be served by the robots. This should reduce the total annual costs for elderly care by a significant amount.
Robots can have a significant business impact on the training of nurses. Robot nurses are cheaper to maintain, quicker to train, and easier to repair and refuel. While the initial cost could be high, the overall cost to maintain, repair, and refuel are significantly low. Robotic nurses can also perform most of the boring and dangerous nursing jobs. The use of robots for elderly care should help in reducing the exposure of nurses to hazardous chemicals or infections.
Impact on healthcare
The elder care robots should see a significant improvement in the provision of quality healthcare. The robots can use cameras and sensors to supervise the elderly person. They should ensure that they get the right medication and that they do not fall. Such a robot can be found in the Smart-home technology which uses sensors to track patient movement and patterns and automatically detects when something is wrong. For instance, a fully automated house with the Smart-home technology should be able to detect when a patient falls through the use of sensors and trigger an alert for the caregivers.
Robots can address cognitive decline issues among the elderly and help patients dealing with dementia. Robots can remind the elderly when to eat, drink, take medication, do exercise, and attend an appointment (Mordoch et al., 2013). Equipped with conversational skills, robots could help the mind of the elderly to remain sharp by engaging them questions and games or maintaining conversations (Lewis, 2017). The robot can also track the loss of memory or the progress of the patient over a period of time. These tasks should be performed adequately by the care robots with a high degree of accuracy and on a constant basis. Robots should perform their activities during holidays, working hours, and nights because they can work endlessly and do not suffer from boredom or fatigue.
Robots that have computer screens can also act as telepresence machines that bridge the gap between the elderly and health-care professionals. Traveling to the hospital can be a daunting experience for the elderly. Frequent nurse visits are usually costly and time-consuming. Instead, the doctor could check on the patient more frequently through the use of a screen. Advanced robots should come with a remote machine control for simple activities like that of checking vitals. Different family members could also use the telepresence ability to communicate with the elderly.
Eldercare robots can improve the quality of patient care by creating a social contact. Elderly people usually deal with loneliness and isolation which increases the risk for various ailments such as elevated blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, cognitive deterioration. Being old and alone may also mean that the elderly patient does not get emergency care services. Robots can play a big role in keeping the elderly engaged and socially active. They can help improve the mental and emotional stability of the elderly too (Bemelmans et al., 2012).
In conclusion, the adoption and application of robots can have significant positive impacts on businesses and healthcare in the near future. Eldercare robots should see a growth in the robotics industry and its application of robots in healthcare. Robots can also reduce the annual costs of elder care by reducing costs of personnel. Robots are also cheaper and easier to train. The impact on health care will be significant through the provision of services that are accurate and consistent. Eldercare patients that suffer from dementia will find robots resourceful in reminding them or keeping them engaged. The use and application of robots in elder care will have a significant impact on the quality of patient care.
References
Bemelmans, R., Gelderblom, G. J., Jonker, P., & De Witte, L. (2012). Socially assistive robots in elderly care: A systematic review into effects and effectiveness. Journal of the American Medical Directors Association , 13 (2), 114-120.
Lewis, L. (2017). Using narrative with avatars and robots to enhance elder care. In Healthcare Ethics and Training: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications (pp. 744-763). IGI Global.
Lutz, W., Sanderson, W., & Scherbov, S. (2008). The coming acceleration of global population aging. Nature , 451 (7179), 716.
Hosseini, S., & Goher, K. (2017). Personal care robots for older adults: an overview.
Mordoch, E., Osterreicher, A., Guse, L., Roger, K., & Thompson, G. (2013). Use of social commitment robots in the care of elderly people with dementia: A literature review. Maturitas , 74 (1), 14-20.
