Interview with Selina Seah, director of the
national health robotics lab and Assistant CEO of Changi General Hospital.
76-year-old
Mr Tan is at the doctor’s for his backache. While he waits for his appointment,
a robot trundles up and asks for his symptoms. Later, the doctor prescribes a
mobile app with exercises.
This
could well be the future of healthcare in Singapore. Its national health
robotics lab – Centre for Healthcare Assistive and Robotics Technology at
Changi General Hospital – is researching and testing new ways to deliver care
and improve staff’s productivity.
GovInsider
spoke with Selina Seah, the centre’s director and Assistant Chief Executive of
Changi General Hospital, to find out what lies ahead.
Smart hospitals
Singapore’s
ageing population is leading to more complex diseases, people living longer and
fewer caregivers – what Seah calls a “triple tsunami”. The government plans to
build “smart hospitals” to deal with this onslaught using robotics.
Changi
General Hospital has started by automating logistics. Transport robots have
been working in the hospital since last year, moving documents, drugs,
specimens and linen. They navigate obstacles on their own, and are linked with
the hospital’s fire alarm system for emergencies. The hospital next plans to
use robots to move heavier objects, like patient beds.
It is
also researching roles for robots to interact directly with people. “We are
looking at robots to be the interface between humans,” she says. For instance,
robots could get information from patients while they wait to see a doctor.
A third
area for robots is in precision medicine. The hospital is researching whether
robots can be used for surgeries and rehabilitation. “They can help in making
sure that the treatment is consistent and precise, far more than a human,” says
Seah. Robots would be able to pinpoint the exact location of tumours, for
instance, and do less damage doing surgeries.
Health games
The
hospital is researching whether mobile apps can be used for treatments. “We are
look at working with certain researchers and also industry players,” she says.
Chronic
diseases are on the rise, and their treatment involves lifestyle changes. For
instance, drugs only do half the work for diabetes, Seah says. Patients must
also exercise and watch their diet. “How do we prescribe that part and ensure
that can be complied to?”
Mobile
apps can help by gamifying healthcare, she says. Apps can track their performance
and use the data to motivate patients to change their behaviour. “People
challenge themselves if there is a goal to be challenged on”, Seah says.
Singapore
is not the only one looking at health apps. The US Food and Drug Administration
is looking at “certified mobile health apps”, Seah says, while South Korea and
European countries are “fighting to enter”.
Such apps
are yet to be clinically trialled, however. They must be tested to ensure that
patients recover faster. “It’s no different from the rigour one needs to go
through for drugs,” she says.
Personalised medicine
Even with
new treatments, every person reacts uniquely to exercise, drugs and food.
Doctors have to try various combinations to find out what works best for each
patient. When the trials don’t work and diseases get more complicated, it
becomes “a huge burden to the whole society”. This is “the problem here for us
in Singapore”, she says.
Singapore
is looking at how it can use personalised treatments to prevent complications.
“It’s a five-year research programme which has just started,” Seah says,
targeting diabetes, stroke and cardiovascular diseases.
The
country has already taken the first step towards it. It has built a national
electronic health records system. It is now looking to build “predictive
algorithms” that can analyse data, like blood sugar readings, and recommend
personalised treatments. This would be able to alert individuals and hospitals
before people fall seriously ill.
The road ahead
The
vision for smart hospitals could become a reality in three to five years, she
says. A few things that will need to change to make way, however.
Robots
will take over some jobs, people will need to be retrained. “We foresee the
need to transform the workforce in the next five to ten years,” Seah says.
Security
will have to be improved with the increased use of data analytics. Some mobile
health technologies are still “hackable”, she says. Singapore will need to “be
a step ahead on cyber security issues”.
A third
challenge is coordination across government. “There are many personal views
about robotics”, she says, and “even more” about health robots. Getting all the
stakeholders to agree on funding priorities has been “a rather long
engagement”. The health robotics lab plays a crucial role in bringing all the
stakeholders on the same page.
A visit
to the doctor in the future could mean a prescription of mobile games and
treatment by robots.
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