Identification of care tasks for the use of wearable transfer support robots – an observational study at nursing facilities using robots on a daily basis

Abstract

Background To reduce the physical burden of caregivers, wearable transfer support robots are highly desirable. Although these robots are reportedly effective for specific tasks in experimental environments, there is little information about their effectiveness at nursing care facilities. The aim of this study was to identify care tasks and operations suitable for the use of these robots among caregivers in nursing facilities where these robots have been in use on a daily basis. Methods A 1-min observational time-motion analysis was conducted to examine care tasks and operations in two nursing facilities where wearable transfer support robots, namely Muscle Suit or HAL® Lumbar Type for Care Support, have been used routinely on a daily basis for more than 24 months. Results Analysis of the care tasks and their time ratio while wearing the equipment revealed that both robots were used conspicuously for direct care in over 70% of transits, especially during transfer assistance and toileting care. Furthermore, these robots were used intensively in the morning along with wake-up calls to care recipients, where pre-assigned wearers used them as part of their “routine work.” Conclusions We found that these wearable transfer support robots enabled effective performance of care tasks and operations in nursing facilities where these robots have been used on a daily basis for an extended period of time. These results may lead to the effective implementation and sustained operation of other types of care robots in the future. Trial registration UMIN Clinical Trials Registry no. UMIN000039204. Trial registration date: January 21, 2020. Interventional study. Parallel, non-randomized, single blinded.

A rise-assisting robot extends life space and improves facial expressions of nursing home residents

“…It should be noted that our study was conducted in a nursing home that accommodated residents who need assistive devices such as wheelchairs to move around and might need assistance to transfer to a wheelchair. Thus, there is a need for transfer assistance to ensure residents can access their life spaces, and, naturally, such access is heavily dependent on the availability of the caregivers, as well as other institutional factors [ 8 , 13 , 17 ], including care routines (timing and place of meals, timing and number of transfers) [ 13 ] and the scheduling of regular events [ 13 , 17 ]. Other factors may include the constraints imposed by working environments in which caregivers ordinarily need to carry out a wide variety of care tasks with limited manpower, including direct care such as transferring, toileting, and mealtime and bathing assistance, as well as the documentation and administration of medication [ 8 , 31 , 32 ].…”

“…Thus, there is a need for transfer assistance to ensure residents can access their life spaces, and, naturally, such access is heavily dependent on the availability of the caregivers, as well as other institutional factors [ 8 , 13 , 17 ], including care routines (timing and place of meals, timing and number of transfers) [ 13 ] and the scheduling of regular events [ 13 , 17 ]. Other factors may include the constraints imposed by working environments in which caregivers ordinarily need to carry out a wide variety of care tasks with limited manpower, including direct care such as transferring, toileting, and mealtime and bathing assistance, as well as the documentation and administration of medication [ 8 , 31 , 32 ]. Considering these limitations, any reduction in the need for multiple caregivers for transfers as a result of using Resyone devices should contribute to an improvement in the operational efficiency of transfer assistance [ 9 ].…”

“…The development of transfer support robots has been promoted because they can reduce strain on the lower back of caregivers, as described previously [ 9 ]. Another of our earlier studies showed that nursing homes have been sustainably using wearable transfer-assistive robots in a variety of direct care situations, such as transfer, toileting, and bathing assistances [ 8 ]. Other studies have suggested the use of a robotic lifting device [ 5 ] and a robot-assisted transfer device [ 10 ] to reduce the physical demand on caregivers during transfer care tasks.…”

Increased proficiency in operational methods of care using a transfer support device in nursing homes

“…The time study was similar to an observational study that was reported previously as a time-motion study [15], in which all caregivers were observed directly. In brief, a professional observer, following a caregiver throughout the daytime shift, analyzed the tasks and recorded them using codes that were based on the code chart used in the Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare, Survey of Long-term Care in Japan [16], which has been translated into English and is available as supplementary materials in our previous study of the pro ciency of exoskeleton usage in nursing care facilities [17]. Note that in the present study, care code 222: Transfer was subdivided into 22201: Verbal action for transfer, 22202: Actual assistance, and 22203: Watching after transfer in order to examine the transfer situations in more detail.…”

Time–motion analysis of external facilitation for implementing the Collaborative Chronic Care Model in general mental health clinics: Use of an interval-based data collection approach

“…Time–motion studies are widely used in fields such as industrial engineering to measure the amount of time and movements that employees require to complete work tasks ( Burri Jr. & Helander, 1991 ; Magu et al, 2015 ). Time–motion studies are increasingly used in health care settings to assess and improve clinic workflow ( Kato et al, 2021 ; Solomon et al, 2021 ). Examples include comparing nurses’ time spent in face-to-face versus care management activities in the Collaborative Chronic Care Model (CCM) ( Glick et al, 2004 ), comparing physicians’ time spent working in the electronic health record versus face-to-face time with patients in clinic visits ( Young et al, 2018 ), and improving patient wait times by assessing and restructuring clinical practice patterns to eliminate inefficiencies ( Racine & Davidson, 2002 ).…”