The health care sector faces great challenges for the future, such as the increase in the aging population and the shortage of health and care personnel in medical centers. To solve these challenges, a new generation of robots capable of performing a multitude of routine tasks is emerging, as well as others with highly specialized capabilities that will help experts in their work.
Traditionally, robotics has been associated with industrial activities, but other sectors are interested in having mechanical assistants to ease the workload and support professionals in their daily tasks. One of them is health care, which faces great challenges for the future, such as labor shortages or an aging population, which will generate much more work in hospitals and other health care centers.
The latest research from GlobalData indicates that the population over 65 years of age will increase from 9.6% in 2020 to 11.8% in 2030, and this will put a lot of pressure on the health sector, which in most countries is exceeded. Once the pandemic has passed, the health care industry faces new challenges due to work overload, the growing demand for hospital beds and the shortage of qualified personnel in certain areas. And, to face them, they will resort to new technologies for health care.
GlobalData experts point out that in the remainder of the decade the industry will increase its investment in new robotic solutions to alleviate this tension and improve the provision of services, including care robots, surgical robots, exoskeletons and microrobots . For its part, the robotics industry is working on the development of many lines of business focused on the field of health, and great progress is expected in the coming years, which will generate great interest in the health sector.
The rise of robots dedicated to patient care
In their report “ Tech in 2030 – Thematic Intelligence ”, GlobalData researchers forecast that, by 2030, care robots will increase their share within the medical robotics segment from the current 1% to 28%. Jemima Walker, Theme Analyst at GlobalData, explains that surgical robots have traditionally been the focus of healthcare robotics, but a big push is expected in the care robot segment. She opines that these “ will not only dramatically reduce the cost of caring for elderly patients and provide emotional support , but also relieve nurses of repetitive tasks. This extra time will be vital in handling large volumes of patients .”
In this field, a multitude of connected technologies are emerging for the continuous monitoring of patients, such as IoT devices that operate within hospitals, or that people can carry with them to keep precise control of their evolution after being discharged. But in the coming years, robots will emerge capable of performing jobs such as changing beds, moving patients within health centers or cleaning rooms and operating rooms, among other innovative uses.
More surgical robotics and exoskeletons
For years, surgical robots have helped surgeons to carry out complex operations, even remotely , transferring the capacity of the best specialists to geographically distant places. This technology has come a long way and GlobalData researchers believe that its market will continue to grow throughout this decade, reaching a value of 14.5 billion dollars by 2030. They believe that this type of robot will help meet the growing demand for less invasive surgical interventions, such as cardiovascular ones.
On the other hand, they are convinced that exoskeletons will play a very important role in health care, especially in the rehabilitation of patients after surgery or stroke victims. They anticipate medical exoskeleton market revenue to grow to $10.1 billion by the end of this decade.
By then, Walker says, “ health care providers will need to invest in robotics, not only to offset increased demand for care, but also to fill gaps in the workforce. Surgical robots will provide minimally invasive surgical support , freeing up surgeons for more complex procedures. This approach will also reduce recovery times and thus the length of hospital stay .”
Microrobots for the treatment of the nervous system
Lastly, the GlobalData report indicates that microrobot technology will experience great advances in the coming years, expanding the number and types of procedures that they will be able to carry out. For example, the localized administration of drugs , microsurgery or the precise diagnosis of ailments. Walker says that this is one of the most important advances in medical robotics, since in the future these micromachines will be able to perform operations on a cellular scale in a minimally invasive way . And he hopes that by 2030 he can completely revolutionize the treatment of diseases of the central nervous system, one of the most complex fields in medicine.