Back in the dark ages of medicine, I mean, in 2014, I wrote about competition from Dr. Nurses and Assistant Physicians. Now I’m writing about Dr. Robot. Same issue. Just on steroids.
An article by Michelle Starr published last week on Cnet.com reported that a team of scientists at Children’s National Medical Center has created a robot capable of performing soft tissue surgery. It “sees” in three dimensions both in the visible spectrum and via near-infrared night-vision. Through the use of florescent markers, it can see and follow the movement of soft tissue.
In a test run suturing together two pieces of pig intestine in vivo, the robot, named STAR (Soft Tissue Autonomous Robot), beat out experienced surgeons, laparoscopy, and “old fashioned” robot-assisted surgery via the Da Vinci system.
It doesn’t take much to see where this is headed. One of the scientists involved in developing STAR, was quoted as saying that within the next few years, STAR “will inform and work with surgeons in supporting better outcome. (sic)”
My question is why he doesn’t realize that once perfected, STAR might not need a surgeon at all. Perhaps it will need a Dr. Nurse or a Physician Assistant, or a nerd who received his or her training at the Game Stop at the local mall.
I don’t have a crystal ball, but I’m not blind, either.
At the same time that cases are exploding out of hospitals to the outpatient setting, a move that is fueled by many factors including technology, technology is also fast enabling a mechanization of medicine just as it enabled a mechanization of industry. The robots building F-150s (or, if it makes you feel better, Teslas) don’t go on strike, take breaks, or call in sick.
The maturation of medical mechanization signals a changing role for physicians. One thing’s for certain: The more control (i.e., ownership) you have over the outpatient facilities that employ emerging technology, the more control you will have over your place in this future.
