Robots in Chemotherapy
Many modern medicines are mixtures of many different drugs to create one substance that reaches the goal the best. Chemotherapy is an example of this. Chemo is an individualized medicine that is used to cure cancer and for each patient there is a different mixture of the medicines to cure the specific type of cancer they have.
In respects to creating a mixture of drugs like this, a robot has been invented to perfect it. At The University of Colorado Hospital, they have started using a robot to help eliminate human errors. According to Nancy Stolpman, “ [Mistakes] happen. Pharmacists and technicians are no different than any other human. They make errors. Just one decimal point [off in calculation] can be a tenfold overdose for a patient. It can be very dangerous.”
The stationary robot works by using an arm to mix the drugs and insert them into either an IV bag, syringe, or vial. Then it disposes of any contaminated materials into a waste bin, when the bin is almost full a person is alerted. By the time the person comes in contact with the waste it has been sealed. The robot allows the a more accurate mixture of drugs as well also ensuring the safety of technicians that would previously had to mix the drugs.
The next steps with this technology is to get them all around the world. It is not only important for the safety of the patient but for the technician because it eliminated the biohazard, to make the robots a common thing at cancer treatment centers internationally. The technology is being used in America and Europe.
In respects to creating a mixture of drugs like this, a robot has been invented to perfect it. At The University of Colorado Hospital, they have started using a robot to help eliminate human errors. According to Nancy Stolpman, “ [Mistakes] happen. Pharmacists and technicians are no different than any other human. They make errors. Just one decimal point [off in calculation] can be a tenfold overdose for a patient. It can be very dangerous.”
The stationary robot works by using an arm to mix the drugs and insert them into either an IV bag, syringe, or vial. Then it disposes of any contaminated materials into a waste bin, when the bin is almost full a person is alerted. By the time the person comes in contact with the waste it has been sealed. The robot allows the a more accurate mixture of drugs as well also ensuring the safety of technicians that would previously had to mix the drugs.
The next steps with this technology is to get them all around the world. It is not only important for the safety of the patient but for the technician because it eliminated the biohazard, to make the robots a common thing at cancer treatment centers internationally. The technology is being used in America and Europe.
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