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SINGAPORE: A new approach to hospital management will see the National University Health System (NUHS) make use of drones, robots and contactless technology on its various campuses.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday (September 24), NUHS COO Ng Kian Swan said that these new types of technology would serve to further improve operations.
“Hospitals are important assets and there is a constant need to make them safer, smarter and, of course, greener,” he said.
“By leveraging technology and IoT (Internet of Things) and AI (artificial intelligence), it helps us drive efficiency, productivity, security, and most importantly, it also provides us with a platform to improve skills of our colleagues … is really preparing a future-ready workforce to support the workforce in operations. “
NUHS comprises healthcare institutions such as Alexandra Hospital, Ng Teng Fong General Hospital, Jurong Community Hospital, and National University Hospital (NUH).
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One way NUHS plans to leverage technology to bolster operations is through the use of drones, Ng said.
“For drones, it replaces the conventional way of placing gondolas, scaffolding, to carry out building inspections. It’s expensive, time-consuming and, to some extent, not that accurate, “he said.
“By using drones, you can go anywhere in the building, take photos, and (this) is relayed to the engineers. And if there are problems to fix them right away, we can do it.”
A drone flies around the facade of the Ng Teng Fong General Hospital building. (Photo: National University Health System)
The use of drones to conduct building inspections has been in place since October last year, and Alexandra Hospital, Ng Teng Fong General Hospital and NUH went through two rounds of inspections. These controls will be carried out on a quarterly basis.
This will mean more frequent and regular inspections to ensure hospital façade maintenance and reduce the risk of problems such as cracks, stains and falling objects from gutters and roof gratings, NUHS added in a press release.
NUHS will also pilot the use of drones to conduct security surveillance and patrol various hospital facilities, monitoring areas with “critical facilities” such as power plants and water tanks, said Mr. Ng.
This has also been implemented in all three hospitals.
ACT AS A DISTRIBUTION
In addition to drones, NUHS is also implementing the use of autonomous security robots to supplement security equipment at patrol facilities.
“This is to support security operations and act as a deterrent. We are working with partners to incorporate some of the functional requirements, including allowing visitors to take their temperatures, ”said Mr. Ng.
One of the robots that can help detect potential security incidents and transmit data, will be deployed at Ng Teng Fong General Hospital next month.
Another robot that helps take temperatures and scan for safe entry will be deployed between November and December at NUH.
A woman interacts with a robot at Ng Teng Fong General Hospital. (Photo: National University Health System)
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Hospital employees will be sent to courses to learn how to operate some of these new technologies.
“At this stage, it’s more about using robots, drones to support their way of working. At the same time, improve them. For us, improving skills is very, very important because technology is something that moves very fast, ”said Mr. Ng.
“And in terms of managing a hospital’s operations for us … this is a point that I always discuss with my colleagues and we should continue to use technology to drive efficiency and operations.”
Mr. Ng also pointed out how the current COVID-19 pandemic has also led to workforce-related problems, and these new technologies can help address these problems.
“COVID-19 actually arose a very challenging problem: dependency on labor. And by leveraging these technologies … you improve efficiency. At the same time, it decreases the need for manpower and for us at NUHS, it is something that is quite important and we will continue to use technology to support our hospital operations. “
Another feature NUHS plans to introduce is contactless technology in the form of contactless elevator buttons. This will help improve infection control and reduce the transmission of bacteria or viruses, especially during the current pandemic, NUHS said.
This will be introduced in select elevators on NUHS campuses by March of next year.
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