Robotic Nursing Assistant (RNA)

Hospitals are currently facing significant staffing crises, especially a shortage of immediate care personnel such as nurses. As a result of this shortage, the number of work-related injuries continues to increase primarily due to more shifts, mandatory overtime, and the aging nursing population. Among the increasing number of work-related injuries, back injuries pose the greatest impact. Back injuries compound the staffing shortage, requiring the remaining nurses to work extra shifts, which in turn, increases the chances of those remaining nurses incurring work-related injuries or making on-the-job mistakes. One way to mitigate the problem is to create a robotic assistant to protect nurses from debilitating injuries. A robotic assistant would shield nurses from injuries, help maintain the workforce, and consequently reduce the number of medical errors caused by nurses. Our innovative concept, combines a robotic platform, dexterous manipulators, and intuitive control interfaces to provide a practical implementation of a robotic nursing assistant. The resultant Robotic Nursing Assistant (RNA) will serve as an extension of the nurse when performing physically challenging maneuvers such, as helping a patient sit up in bed or moving a patient from a gurney to a hospital bed.