Assistive robotic systems in nursing care: a scoping review

Abstract

Background The use of assistive robotic systems in care is intended to relieve nursing staff. Differentiated and literature-based findings on current application possibilities, technological developments and empirical findings are necessary to enable a goal-oriented and participatory development of assistive robotic systems of care. The aim of this review was to identify assistive robotic systems and their areas of application in nursing settings. Furthermore, an overview of existing social and nursing science findings from the research field of assistive robotic systems will be described. Methods A systematic literature search was performed based on the JBI scoping review methodology. During the period from May to August 2020, the databases MEDLINE via PubMed, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and IEEE Xplore Digital Library were searched. In order to reflect current developments and evidence in the present literature work, a supplementary search with these same requirements was conducted in January 2022. Results The 47 included publications are divided into 15 studies, 23 technical articles and nine opinion-based articles (text-opinion). A total of 39 different assistive robotic systems were identified. There were 55% in the testing phase and 29% of the systems in the development phase. Assistive robotic systems can be divided into six fields of application: Information and patient data processing, assistance with activities of daily living, fetch and bring activities, telepresence and communication, monitoring, safety and navigation, and complex assistance systems. The description of the study findings is divided into "integration of technology and impact on practice" and "attitude and acceptance of elderly people towards assistive robotic systems". Conclusion The results of the research show that the use of assistive robotic systems in care mainly take place in the context of development and testing phases. In addition to usability and acceptance issues, implementation factors must be integrated into theory-driven research projects.

Mobile robots for isolation-room hospital settings: A scenario-based preliminary study

“…However, the introduction of robots into nursing should be in an auxiliary role to nurses and not as a complete replacement for them. Categories of utilizing robot systems in nursing are diverse, including information and patient data processing, assistance with patient activities, monitoring, telepresence, communication, safety and navigation [44] . A previous study showed that using a meal assistant robot created a more private and independent eating environment and patients comfortably accepted the robot [45] , while another previous study showed patients positively accepting robots instead of fearing them [46] , which suggests that there could be a gap between robot acceptance by patients as imagined by medical staff and the actual reality.…”

Robotics in Nursing: Protocol for a Scoping Review

“…This scoping review aims to understand the extent and type of evidence in relation to robotics integration in nursing practice. Prior work has focused on investigating assistive robotic systems and their application areas in nursing practice [ 35 ]. Also, some reviews have identified the different tracks in which robots are used in nursing, barriers to implementation, and the outcomes of robots and other automated devices on nurses' activities [ 31 , 37 , 39 ].…”

“…The surge in the interest in using nursing robots in health care is because of the technological capacity to strengthen health care delivery and improve quality health outcomes [ 21 ]. Nursing robots can complement nurses' efforts by undertaking repetitive work such as retrieving and delivering supplies, providing ambulation services, medication delivery services, assisting in patient transfers, lifting, and assisting with standardized approaches to care management [ 30 , 35 , 36 ]. In addition, robots can enhance nurses' work by monitoring patients' condition and vital signs and providing patient reminders [ 26 , 31 ].…”

“…To identify published literature reviews on the use of robotics or robots in nursing practice, a preliminary literature search was conducted (April 13, 2023) in CINAHL Plus with Full Text database, and 4 reviews were located. Ohneberg et al [ 35 ] focused their review on assistive robotic systems and their application areas in nursing practice. The other reviews focused on identifying the different tracks in which robots are used in nursing, barriers to implementation, and the outcomes of robots and other automated devices on nurses' activities [ 31 , 37 , 39 ].…”

“…The other reviews focused on identifying the different tracks in which robots are used in nursing, barriers to implementation, and the outcomes of robots and other automated devices on nurses' activities [ 31 , 37 , 39 ]. Based on the findings from these reviews, the authors proposed that further research studies are needed to explore the acceptance and impact of robotics systems on nursing practice and examine facilitating factors and ethical concerns of implementing robots [ 35 ]. In addition, the authors suggested examining research designs used for undertaking studies in nursing robotics to ascertain the consistency and rigour of the quality of the studies [ 39 ] and evaluate which devices and functions will improve and support nurses' work [ 37 ].…”