scholarly journals IT’S MY BUDDY: EXPLORING THE PERCEPTIONS OF PEOPLE WITH DEMENTIA ABOUT THE SOCIAL ROBOT PARO IN A HOSPITAL SETTING

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S331-S331
Author(s):  
Lillian Hung ◽  
Habib Chaudhury

Abstract New technology such as social robots opens up new opportunities in hospital settings. PARO, a robotic pet seal, was designed to provide emotional and social support for older people with dementia. This project aims to explore the perceptions of persons with dementia about PARO’s role in a hospital setting. Video-ethnographic methods were applied. We had conversational interviews with and video observations of 10 older people with dementia in the geriatric unit of a large Canadian hospital. Also, semi-structured interviews and two focus groups were conducted with 10 staff members in the local unit to gain contextual information. Thematic analysis yielded three substantive themes: (a) “it’s like a buddy”—the robot helps people with dementia uphold a sense of self in the world; (b) “it’s a conversation piece”—the baby seal facilitates social connection; and (c) “it’s all about love”—PARO transforms and humanizes the clinical setting. Our findings help provide a better understanding of the direct perspectives of patients with dementia on the use of social robots. Instead of substituting human contact, the social robot complements emotional care and supports our fundamental human need for love.

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S195-S195
Author(s):  
Lillian Hung ◽  
mario Gregorio ◽  
Jim Mann ◽  
Neil Horne ◽  
Christine Wallsworth ◽  
...  

Abstract PARO, a robotic pet, was designed to provide emotional and social support for older people with dementia. This project aims to explore the perception of persons with dementia about the role of PARO in a hospital setting. Video-ethnographic methods were applied. Patient and family partners were involved in the fieldwork of data collection and analysis. We conducted conversational interviews with ten patients with dementia staying in a geriatric unit and video observations. Thematic analysis yielded three substantive themes: (a) “it’s like a buddy”, the robot helps persons with dementia to uphold a sense of self in the world, (b) “it’s a conversation piece”, the baby seal facilitates social connection, and (c) “it’s all about love”, PARO transforms and humanizes the clinical setting. Our findings contribute to providing a better understanding of the direct perspectives of patients with dementia on the use of the social robot.


Electronics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 1211
Author(s):  
Matthijs H. J. Smakman ◽  
Koen Smit ◽  
Lotte Buser ◽  
Tom Monshouwer ◽  
Nigel van Putten ◽  
...  

Young pediatric patients who undergo venipuncture or capillary blood sampling often experience high levels of pain and anxiety. This often results in distressed young patients and their parents, increased treatment times, and a higher workload for healthcare professionals. Social robots are a new and promising tool to mitigate children’s pain and anxiety. This study aims to purposefully design and test a social robot for mitigating stress and anxiety during blood draw of children. We first programmed a social robot based on the requirements expressed by experienced healthcare professionals during focus group sessions. Next, we designed a randomized controlled experiment in which the social robot was applied as a distraction method to measure its capacity to mitigate pain and anxiety in children during blood draw in a children’s hospital setting. Children who interacted with the robot showed significantly lower levels of anxiety before actual blood collection, compared to children who received regular medical treatment. Children in the middle classes of primary school (aged 6–9) seemed especially sensitive to the robot’s ability to mitigate pain and anxiety before blood draw. Children’s parents overall expressed strong positive attitudes toward the use and effectiveness of the social robot for mitigating pain and anxiety. The results of this study demonstrate that social robots can be considered a new and effective tool for lowering children’s anxiety prior to the distressing medical procedure of blood collection.


2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 48-67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dimitra Xidous ◽  
Tom Grey ◽  
S. P. Kennelly ◽  
Cathy McHale ◽  
Desmond O’Neill

Objectives: Research was conducted to investigate the impact of the hospital environment on older people including patients with dementia and their accompanying persons (APs). The article presents key research findings in the case study hospital. Background: For many patients, the hospital is challenging due to the busy, unfamiliar, and stressful nature of the environment. For a person with dementia, the hospital experience can be exacerbated by cognitive impairment and behavioral or psychological symptoms and can therefore prove to be a frightening, distressing, and disorientating place. Method: The findings are based on a stakeholder engagement process where the research team spent approximately 150 hr observing within the hospital, administered 95 questionnaires to patients and/or APs, and conducted 12 structured interviews with patients and APs. A thematic analysis was employed to analyze and generate key themes emerging from the process. Results: Themes were grouped into overarching issues and design issues across spatial scales. Conclusion: This research confirms the negative impact of the acute hospital setting on older people with cognitive impairments including dementia and delirium. The multiple perspectives captured in this study, including most importantly people with dementia, ensure that stakeholder needs can be used to inform the design of the hospital environment. The research points to the value of understanding the lived experience of the person with dementia and APs. The voices of patients, particularly persons with dementia and their APs, are a crucial element in helping hospitals to fulfill their role as caregiving and healing facilities.


Dementia ◽  
2019 ◽  
pp. 147130121989414 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lillian Hung ◽  
Mario Gregorio ◽  
Jim Mann ◽  
Christine Wallsworth ◽  
Neil Horne ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Dympna Casey ◽  
Eva Barrett ◽  
Tanja Kovacic ◽  
Daniele Sancarlo ◽  
Francesco Ricciardi ◽  
...  

People with dementia often experience loneliness and social isolation. This can result in increased cognitive decline which, in turn, has a negative impact on quality of life. This paper explores the use of the social robot, MARIO, with older people living with dementia as a way of addressing these issues. A descriptive qualitative study was conducted to explore the perceptions and experiences of the use and impact of MARIO. The research took place in the UK, Italy and Ireland. Semi-structured interviews were held in each location with people with dementia (n = 38), relatives/carers (n = 28), formal carers (n = 28) and managers (n = 13). The data was analyzed using qualitative content analysis. The findings revealed that despite challenges in relation to voice recognition and the practicalities of conducting research involving robots in real-life settings, most participants were positive about MARIO. Through the robot’s user-led design and personalized applications, MARIO provided a point of interest, social activities, and cognitive engagement increased. However, some formal carers and managers voiced concern that robots might replace care staff.


Healthcare ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 244
Author(s):  
Daniele Giansanti

This commentary aims to address the field of social robots both in terms of the global situation and research perspectives. It has four polarities. First, it revisits the evolutions in robotics, which, starting from collaborative robotics, has led to the diffusion of social robots. Second, it illustrates the main fields in the employment of social robots in rehabilitation and assistance in the elderly and handicapped and in further emerging sectors. Third, it takes a look at the future directions of the research development both in terms of clinical and technological aspects. Fourth, it discusses the opportunities and limits, starting from the development and clinical use of social robots during the COVID-19 pandemic to the increase of ethical discussion on their use.


Healthcare ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (11) ◽  
pp. 1454
Author(s):  
Rossella Simeoni ◽  
Federico Colonnelli ◽  
Veronica Eutizi ◽  
Matteo Marchetti ◽  
Elena Paolini ◽  
...  

Motivation: We are witnessing two phenomena. The first is that the physiotherapist is increasingly becoming a figure that must interact with Digital Health. On the other hand, social robots through research are improving more and more in the aspects of social interaction thanks also to artificial intelligence and becoming useful in rehabilitation processes. It begins to become strategic to investigate the intersections between these two phenomena. Objective: Therefore, we set ourselves the goal of investigating the consensus and opinion of physiotherapists around the introduction of social robots in clinical practice both in rehabilitation and assistance. Procedure: An electronic survey has been developed focused on social robot-based rehabilitation and assistance and has been submitted to subjects focused on physiotherapy sciences to investigate their opinion and their level of consent regarding the use of the social robot in rehabilitation and assistance. Two samples of subjects were recruited: the first group (156 participating subjects, 79 males, 77 females, mean age 24.3 years) was in the training phase, and the second (167 participating subjects, 86 males, 81 females, mean age 42.4 years) group was involved in the work processes. An electronic feedback form was also submitted to investigate the acceptance of the proposed methodology. Results: The survey showed a consistency of the results between the two samples from which interesting considerations emerge. Contrary to stereotypes that report how AI-based devices put jobs at risk, physiotherapists are not afraid of these devices. The subjects involved in the study believe the following: (a) social robots can be reliable co-workers but will remain a complementary device; (b) their role will be of the utmost importance as an operational manager in their use and in performance monitoring; (c) these devices will allow an increase in working capacity and facilitate integration. All those involved in the study believe that the proposed electronic survey has proved to be a useful and effective tool that can be useful as a periodic monitoring tool and useful for scientific societies. Conclusions: The evolution of social robots represents an unstoppable process as does the increase in the aging of the population. Stakeholders must not look with suspicion toward these devices, which can represent an important resource, but rather invest in monitoring and consensus training initiatives.


2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 346-358 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Bishop ◽  
Anouk van Maris ◽  
Sanja Dogramadzi ◽  
Nancy Zook

AbstractResearch in social robotics is focused on the development of robots that can provide physical and cognitive support in a socially interactive way. Whilst some studies have previously investigated the importance of user characteristics (age, gender, education, robot familiarity, mood) in the acceptance of social robots as well as the influence a robot’s displayed emotion (positive, negative, neutral) has on the interaction, these two aspects are rarely combined. Therefore, this study attempts to highlight the need to consider the influence that both human and robot attributes can have on social robot acceptance. Eighty-six participants completed implicit and explicit measures of mood before viewing one of three video clips containing a positive, negative or neutral social robot (Pepper) followed by questionnaires on robot acceptance and perception. Gender and education were not associated with acceptance; however, several constructs of the acceptance questionnaire significantly correlated with age and mood. For example, those younger and those experiencing sadness or loneliness were more dependent on the opinions of others (as measured by the social influence construct of the acceptance questionnaire). This highlights the importance of mood in the introduction of social robots into vulnerable populations. Robot familiarity also correlated with robot acceptance with those more familiar finding the robot less useful and less enjoyable, this is important as robots become more prominent in society. Displayed robot emotion significantly influenced acceptance and perception with the positive robot appearing more childlike than the negative and neutral robot, and the neutral robot the least helpful. These findings emphasise the importance of both user and robot characteristics in the successful integration of social robots.


2020 ◽  
Vol 141 ◽  
pp. 104241
Author(s):  
Chen Ke ◽  
Vivian Wei-qun Lou ◽  
Kelvin Cheng-kian Tan ◽  
Man Yi Wai ◽  
Lai Lok Chan

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