Japan Wants To Increase Acceptance of Technology That Could Help Fill the Gap in the Nursing Workforce (theguardian.com) 57
With Japan's ageing society facing a predicted shortfall of 370,000 caregivers by 2025, the government wants to increase community acceptance of technology that could help fill the gap in the nursing workforce. From a report: Developers have focused their efforts on producing simple robotic devices that help frail residents get out of their bed and into a wheelchair, or that can ease senior citizens into bathtubs. But the government sees a wider range of potential applications and recently revised its list of priorities to include robots that can predict when patients might need to use the toilet. Dr Hirohisa Hirukawa, director of robot innovation research at Japan's National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, said the aims included easing the burden on nursing staff and boosting the autonomy of people still living at home. "Robotics cannot solve all of these issues; however, robotics will be able to make a contribution to some of these difficulties," he said. Hirukawa said lifting robotics had so far been deployed in only about 8% of nursing homes in Japan, partly because of the cost and partly because of the "the mindset by the people on the frontline of caregiving that after all it must be human beings who provide this kind of care."
Comment removed (Score:3, Interesting)
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I was about to say "he's right" -- not every problem needs a technical solution.
But a technical solution will always be light years better than importing foreigners.
So nevermind. You're right.
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Because Greece has done such a great job for its elderly population [huffingtonpost.com] on its own.
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Immigrant labor is an alternative to labor saving technology, and xenophobia often comes with that, so it does seem related to me. Without getting into the validity or lack thereof of anti-immigrant arguments, it's a fact that they crop up.
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http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/02/news/japanborn-koreans-live-in-limbo.html
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/05/07/national/media-national/japans-resident-koreans-endure-climate-hate/
Re: Bring in third world immigrants instead! (Score:2)
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This is Japan, not America. They actually have health care that looks after it's people instead of one that maximises profit.
He's (sort of) wrong (Score:3)
CURRENT robotics can't solve all these problems. We simply don't have the general AI to run them (or even a sufficiently complex but unthinking algorithm). It's not a hardware issue anymore, it's a software issue.
I can even see something like those privacy invading 'speakers' we're reading so much about solving some of the issues. Imagine, for instance, a system set up not to buy things from Amazon, but to engage a home automation mechanism or grab the attention of a remote operator with nursing training when called upon. Or maybe have it listen for sounds of anguish or a fall so it can ask, "Are you OK?" and notify 911 if it doesn't get a suitable response. Connect it to things in the home so it knows if you've used the toilet in the last 24hrs, if the stove has been left on, to let it shut the TV off if it thinks it needs to communicate with you, to monitor whether you're even in your home at all.
Maybe (most sinister of all) give it access to your contacts list and keep track of how long its been since you've spoken to anyone, then send reminders of birthdays, anniversaries, etc. to hopefully get you some protection against unintentional social isolation.
Re:He's (sort of) wrong (Score:5, Insightful)
Just being able to lift seniors in and out of bed, or readjusting the sheets, (without hurting the caregiver's back) would be a real boon to caregivers.
I'm a big guy myself, I know how to lift properly, but I still hurt myself taking care of my elderly mother (even though, home hospice care lent us a motorized hospital bed). And I can't imagine nurses doing this kind of work for very long if they hurt their lower back or get carpal tunnel syndrome after just a few weeks.
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We have pretty decent environment mapping and object detection now. Not as good as a small mammal, but pretty good compared to what most people believe computers can do these days.
There are now robots that can walk, run, climb stairs, etc.
We (common consumers, not the military or industry) will get full-function sexbots first. That's where the easy money is - there's already one with an animated head that can utter prerecorded sounds when triggered. Then will come the basic robotic nurse. And after that,
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I agree, but I'd like to stress the following.
Fully humanoid looking robot nurses will be cool, but that's not what I'm advocating for in the short term.
In the short term, there are many simpler problems and low hanging fruits that robotics could help with that do not require the robot to have a full human-like body.
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One of my mom's friends was a tiny woman, maybe 80-90 pounds tops. Her grandson was about my size (not small), and half my age, but he had trouble lifting her. She was pretty much dead weight, and lifting her was harder than one would think just looking at her.
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That's a good point, dead weight can be extremely difficult to lift. Add to that someone who has massive pain because their cancer has reached their nervous system and any slight movement in the wrong direction can throw them into agonizing pain.
And frankly, I don't know how nurses can do this as a career. It's grueling work. And it's super easy to become permanently injured doing it. I did this for my mother, but I would never be able to do it for perfect strangers, day after day. It's just too difficult.
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Just being able to lift seniors in and out of bed, or readjusting the sheets, (without hurting the caregiver's back) would be a real boon to caregivers.
I'm a big guy myself, I know how to lift properly, but I still hurt myself taking care of my elderly mother (even though, home hospice care lent us a motorized hospital bed). And I can't imagine nurses doing this kind of work for very long if they hurt their lower back or get carpal tunnel syndrome after just a few weeks.
Great for those of us who assist disabled people too.
Like Nurses (Score:2)
or maybe living wage for those the basically train and support or society...Teachers, Nurses, Cops...
Brings up an interesting point about lifespan (Score:5, Insightful)
Maybe "The light that burns twice as bright burns half as long" is really the way we should be approaching this. AARP forgive me, but maybe we should decrease or stop funding for research against illnesses which typically afflict us when we're elderly, and concentrate instead on combating diseases which can strike us down in childhood to middle age.
You also need to pay for longer lifespan by working longer (retiring later) if you want to maintain the same standard of living. Is it really worth giving up 3-4 years (retirement at 68-69 instead of 65), in order to gain 5 years of extra life at 78?
Healthier people have better quality of life (Score:3)
Re:Brings up an interesting point about lifespan (Score:4, Interesting)
exoskeleton (Score:2)
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Japan already has a film about that. [wikipedia.org]
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I've heard of exoskeleton tech being theorized for helping soldiers carry equipment. It makes sense that it could also help for other work that could use more strength.
just say no to pain, suffering, dementia... (Score:3, Interesting)
I'm well into my 70s and I have a suggestion worth discussing. Why not let seniors opt out?
Many that I know would be willing to take the 'deep sleep' pill because they feel that they are a burden to others. They have outlived their usefulness. It's time to go. I may be healthy and active for many more years, but the chances are ever increasing that something may go wrong and my own life will have negative value. I'm willing to bow out.
So consider your own situation and that of people you know. It's illegal in most places, but should there be an option to 'opt out' for everyone whenever they want?
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If there was an option for a Logan's Run affair, I think in my mid 80's I'd be willing to go out in style. Sign up as a Runner and have the Sandmen chase me and with nothing to lose, it could be entertaining for the masses glued to their digital organs they call smartphones.
In your mid-80s, it might not be much of a "chase", just saying.
Opting for carousel might be a better option. You get to fly.
And there's always the Box option.
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I'm all for making it possible for people to choose to leave with dignity.
The biggest problem is how to prevent pressure, where those who stand to inherit deliberately or unconsciously create a pressure on people to end their lives. Even if none is intended, elderly people may feel it's expected of them.
The second biggest problem is disrespect. There are plenty of people, especially among the religious, who are so abhorred by suicide that they will classify anyone contemplating it as mentally unsound, and
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Most people who attempt and fail at suicide never try again, and many wind up extremely grateful that they didn't quite make it. Only about 4% of suicides are successful, and suicide is a leading cause of death among teenagers -- not really the target audience we're talking about, but an important consideration. If someone is considering suicide because they're old and want to avoid a couple years of medical bills and suffering, great. If someone is considering suicide because they're a teenager and their g
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Most people who attempt and fail at suicide never try again
And how much of that is due to the amount of guilt others pour onto them?
If someone is considering suicide because they're a teenager and their girlfriend broke up with them, it's appropriate to direct them to counseling.
Why? That seems like you're making an emotional response. Shouldn't a 19 year old be allowed to choose over his or her own life? They're allowed to enlist in the military, so why not take their life and not just risk it? Is it not their own life?
I find this attitude very condescending and disrespectful.
Remember, no one who has committed suicide has ever regretted it.
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Remember, no one who has committed suicide has ever regretted it.
How do you know? Ever had a conversation with one?
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How do you know? Ever had a conversation with one?
I haven't had a conversation with a god either, nor with a green skinned triple-breasted lady from Andromeda. The null hypothesis is that neither exist.
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>Many that I know would be willing to take the 'deep sleep' pill because they feel that they are a burden to others. They have outlived their usefulness. It's time to go
Let me let you in on a little secret - you outlived your usefulness before you were conceived, simply because there's no objective point to existing. Why should your worth be measured by your ability to make life easier for others?
Subjectively, life is what you make it. As a social primate, your instincts should probably drive you to fi
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Because by and large life sucks (Score:2)
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The latest research suggests that most people, especially male, under age 25 have not completed their brain development to a point where they can make this type of decision rationally. So that's a factor for the law and scientists to consider. But even then, such a person with a painful disease tends to mature quickly and might reasonably be allowed to choose a peaceful end.
The 'deep sleep' pill is an important factor. People are being very messy and thoughtless in their suicide choices. An international ne
Logans Run (Score:2)
I see your life crystal has turned black, time to renew at Carousel.
Wanting the human touch. (Score:2)
They can want the human touch all they like, but as long as caring remains a poorly paid and unpleasant job they ain't gonna get it.
For sure they can import Phillipnio slave girls to do it, but that's just poor form IMHO.
Pay carers well and the problem fades.