Robotics and AI will radically change the way we live, and the type of work humans do. One area of work we thought might be immune from such change was personal social care, where ‘people need people’ to care for them.
Yet the UK Government’s recent announcement that it is investing £34m to advance the development of ‘care robots’ challenges this view. The driver is clear; with more people surviving into old age, and fewer young people to support them, we face a widening care gap.
The Government funded research will focus on how to make robotic systems ‘safe and trustworthy’ for public use. But is this a realistic aim for the problem we face imminently? A safe and trusted care robot feels a long way off.
Research by PA has shown that people with care needs and their carers have significant reservations about using robots for care. They worry that an autonomous device with an AI ‘brain’ would be out of their control and would not be sensitive or gentle enough to avoid accidentally damaging a frail or helpless person. Even if these challenges can be overcome quickly from a technical standpoint, building trust will take time; a luxury we don’t have.
That’s why PA is actively engaging with care commissioners, service providers, policy-makers and regulators to explore the alternative of cobots (collaborative robots). They are worn, like an active exoskeleton, to work in conjunction with, rather than separately from a human. In one device we are trialling in care settings, electrical signals between the wearer’s brain and their muscles are detected, amplified and converted into motion. This helps the wearer’s movement when they are lifting, holding, and moving objects or people.
Reactions from those receiving ‘cobot-assisted’ care so far have been positive. There is no requirement to build trust, as all they experience is their familiar human carer wearing an unobtrusive device. The question instead shifts to how to make the carer comfortable with using the cobot. They need to be confident that it can help them deliver hands-on care and reduce fatigue and risk. If this can be achieved, then potentially a single carer can be deployed instead of two.
If this trial is successful, cobots could be an effective way to bridge the care gap. They could help to ensure that those most in need of hands-on support continue to receive that from a human carer, who is in turn being supported by a cobot.
It is essential that solutions are found before the looming crisis in the care workforce overwhelms the sector. So, while we applaud Government for investing in robotics for care, we hope the research is scoped broadly enough to support ideas like cobots.
To find out more, contact Lesley Grant at Lesley.Grant@paconsulting.com or visit our website www.paconsulting.com