AL AIN // VGo is a revolutionary new robot that can be found whizzing around the hallways of Amana Healthcare, a long-term care facility in Al Ain.
The healthcare provider is the first in the region to introduce the remote-control robot which replicates a person. “The idea is that you can consult with someone on the outside. We could theoretically consult someone in the United States or Germany,” said Arlene Susanne Ryan, a quality co-ordinator at Amana, in Al Ain, which have partnered with VGo Communications, a US-based provider of telepresence robotics.
The robot works on Wi-Fi and has a high-resolution manoeuvrable camera. There are just two in the UAE; both at Amana health-care facilities in the UAE, said Ms Ryan, who believes this is the start of a new era for medicine in the country.
“Sometimes you are in the situation when we come across things unusual from time to time. That is just medicine. So we might end up needing to speak to an expert and say, ‘Look doctor, we have this and we are not sure what it is. Can you help?’. Instead of taking patients unnecessarily out of the facility we are actually bringing doctors to them.”
The hospital has already used VGo, which works through a software application that is downloaded to an iPad or laptop, to link up with Wellington Hospital in London. It allowed a patient who was interested in the Al Ain facility to take a virtual tour.
The robot, which cost about Dh40,000, also has a more emotive purpose.
“Family members can also log into this at home or abroad and can take the robot to a patient’s room,” said Nicola Costas, an occupational therapist. “They have a conversation with their relative where ever they are in the world.”
jbell@thenational.ae
