Robots to do hospital's dirty work
A fleet of robots is to carry out day-to-day tasks at an NHS hospital, it was revealed yesterday.
The robots will be used to transport clinical waste and dirty linen, deliver food and dispense drugs at the new Forth Valley Royal Hospital in Larbert, Stirlingshire.
They are being tested at the £300m (€359m) hospital ahead of its opening in August.
The state-of-the-art technology is already in place in hospitals in Japan, the US and France.
The robots will run along their own dedicated network of corridors underneath the hospital.
The fleet will be divided into "clean" and "dirty" tasks, with each being given their own corridor to avoid the risk of cross-contamination.
NHS Forth Valley spokesman Elspeth Campbell said the new system would help with infection control.
She added that the robots would not replace humans, but would free up more time for staff to spend with patients.
- Cordelia O'Neill in London
Irish Independent
