27 March 2020 11:45 pm
The treatment of two suspected Covid-19 patients at the Homagama Base Hospital will be carried out with the assistance of a robot, Hospital Director Dr. Janith Hettiarachchi said.
The robot which had been provided by the Atlas group of companies is reportedly capable of completing daily tasks efficiently which would otherwise require the manpower of at least 100 humans.
The robot is capable of travelling from ward to ward, communicating the patient's health condition to the attending medical personnel and also communicating information from a doctor to the patient. The robot can also be used to dispense food and drugs according to the needs of the patient.
The robot designed and created by a local company had been manufactured at a cost of approximately Rs. 1 million. The international market value for a similar product is said to be at least Rs. 5 million. Accordingly the robot will be utilised to carry out daily tasks of the hospital as a pilot experiment. Similar projects are expected to be implemented in other hospitals in future.(Bimal Shamen & Shantha Pradeep –Mattegoda)