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The Robot Doctor… A Line of Defense Against the Virus in a Saudi Hospital

The Robot Doctor… A Line of Defense Against the Virus in a Saudi Hospital
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The Robot Doctor… A Line of Defense Against the Virus in a Saudi Hospital

The Robot Doctor… A Line of Defense Against the Virus in a Saudi Hospital

As the entire world is practicing "social distancing" and "working from home", robots have found an opportunity to work. This is especially the case in medicine, which has become one of the most dangerous fields, with medical workers and doctors fighting on the frontline against the virus.

Despite being susceptible to technical viruses, robots are not susceptible to viruses like the new coronavirus. This has made robots more valuable now, acting as a link between the patient on the one hand, and nurses and doctors on the other.

Saudi Arabia has employed artificial intelligence systems to confront the virus in order to reduce the risk of transmission to medical teams fighting the virus. They are using robots that move between patients and have several features that protect doctors and nurses from the psychological pressures of examining patients.

B2, a robot doctor, commenced work in King Salman Hospital in Riyadh at the beginning of the month. B2 conducts rounds with the medical team to examine and assess patients in a ward that hosts 27 cases.

The robot has a variety of features; using medical equipment attached to it, it can clinically examine the patient, measure their pulse, conduct an eye exam, and examine their skin, ears, and chest. The robot also serves as a means of visual communication between the patient and the human doctor who controls the robot using a mobile application from a separate room or from outside the hospital. The robot knows very well how to navigate the hospital floor and reach patient rooms. Once in the number of the room on the application is typed, the robot directly attends to it.

Internist and rheumatologist, Dr. Nizar Adnan Bakhsh, director of the Department of Internal Medicine at King Salman Hospital, says that they have started practicing Telemedicine by using modern technology to create a link between the patient and the doctor. He said that this helps in keeping healthcare workers safe and reducing the risk of transmission of the coronavirus.

In a phone call with Asharq Al-Awsat, Dr. Bakhsh says that so far there is only one robot that doctors can use to communicate with patients in isolation around the clock, both from inside and outside the hospital, "using a global network that guarantees that connectivity is maintained without interruption”.

B2 is considered to be one of the new doctors in the Ministry of Health’s pilot phase of confronting the virus.

Cyber-medicine provides doctors and other healthcare workers with the chance to provide care and carry out consultations without having to be at the patient’s bedside. It also provides the chance to consult with doctors outside of the hospital, inviting them to a cyber-medical consultation using the robot

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Doctor at the Heart of Türkiye Newborn Baby Deaths Case Says He was a 'Trusted' Physician

A doctor takes the footprint of a newborn baby for his birth certificate at a private clinic in Ankara, October 16, 2011. The world's population will reach seven billion on October 31, according to projections by the United Nations. Picture taken October 16, 2011. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (Türkiye - Tags: SOCIETY HEALTH)
A doctor takes the footprint of a newborn baby for his birth certificate at a private clinic in Ankara, October 16, 2011. The world's population will reach seven billion on October 31, according to projections by the United Nations. Picture taken October 16, 2011. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (Türkiye - Tags: SOCIETY HEALTH)
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Doctor at the Heart of Türkiye Newborn Baby Deaths Case Says He was a 'Trusted' Physician

A doctor takes the footprint of a newborn baby for his birth certificate at a private clinic in Ankara, October 16, 2011. The world's population will reach seven billion on October 31, according to projections by the United Nations. Picture taken October 16, 2011. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (Türkiye - Tags: SOCIETY HEALTH)
A doctor takes the footprint of a newborn baby for his birth certificate at a private clinic in Ankara, October 16, 2011. The world's population will reach seven billion on October 31, according to projections by the United Nations. Picture taken October 16, 2011. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (Türkiye - Tags: SOCIETY HEALTH)

The Turkish doctor at the center of an alleged fraud scheme that led to the deaths of 10 babies told an Istanbul court Saturday that he was a “trusted” physician.

Dr. Firat Sari is one of 47 people on trial accused of transferring newborn babies to neonatal units of private hospitals, where they were allegedly kept for prolonged and sometimes unnecessary treatments in order to receive social security payments.

“Patients were referred to me because people trusted me. We did not accept patients by bribing anyone from 112,” Sari said, referring to Türkiye's emergency medical phone line.

Sari, said to be the plot’s ringleader, operated the neonatal intensive care units of several private hospitals in Istanbul. He is facing a sentence of up to 583 years in prison in a case where doctors, nurses, hospital managers and other health staff are accused of putting financial gain before newborns’ wellbeing, The AP reported.

The case, which emerged last month, has sparked public outrage and calls for greater oversight of the health care system. Authorities have since revoked the licenses and closed 10 of the 19 hospitals that were implicated in the scandal.

“I want to tell everything so that the events can be revealed,” Sari, the owner of Medisense Health Services, told the court. “I love my profession very much. I love being a doctor very much.”

Although the defendants are charged with the negligent homicide of 10 infants since January 2023, an investigative report cited by the state-run Anadolu news agency said they caused the deaths of “hundreds” of babies over a much longer time period.

Over 350 families have petitioned prosecutors or other state institutions seeking investigations into the deaths of their children, according to state media.

Prosecutors at the trial, which opened on Monday, say the defendants also falsified reports to make the babies’ condition appear more serious so as to obtain more money from the state as well as from families.

The main defendants have denied any wrongdoing, insisting they made the best possible decisions and are now facing punishment for unavoidable, unwanted outcomes.

Sari is charged with establishing an organization with the aim of committing a crime, defrauding public institutions, forgery of official documents and homicide by negligence.

During questioning by prosecutors before the trial, Sari denied accusations that the babies were not given the proper care, that the neonatal units were understaffed or that his employees were not appropriately qualified, according to a 1,400-page indictment.

“Everything is in accordance with procedures,” he told prosecutors in a statement.

The hearings at Bakirkoy courthouse, on Istanbul’s European side, have seen protests outside calling for private hospitals to be shut down and “baby killers” to be held accountable.

The case has also led to calls for the resignation of Health Minister Kemal Memisoglu, who was the Istanbul provincial health director at the time some of the deaths occurred. Ozgur Ozel, the main opposition party leader, has called for all hospitals involved to be nationalized.

In a Saturday interview with the A Haber TV channel, Memisoglu characterized the defendants as “bad apples” who had been “weeded out.”

“Our health system is one of the best health systems in the world,” he said. “This is a very exceptional, very organized criminal organization. It is a mistake to evaluate this in the health system as a whole.”

Memisoglu also denied the claim that he shut down an investigation into the claims in 2016, when he was Istanbul’s health director, calling it “a lie and slander.”

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said this week that those responsible for the deaths would be severely punished but warned against placing all the blame on the country’s health care system.

“We will not allow our health care community to be battered because of a few rotten apples,” he said.