A first in American health care pioneered at UMD

Dr. Arshia Khan, a Professor and Director of Graduate Studies within the Swenson College of Science and Engineering, is making history.

Under her guidance, robots will be at work in assisted living facilities for the first time in the United States.

Monarch Healthcare Management will be taking on medical and emotional service robots which will perform a variety of duties, from telling jokes to lifting patients out of bed after major surgery.

“We are approaching it from three different perspectives,” Khan said. “One is the physical, the other one is the emotional, and lastly, cognitive.”

They sing, ask about medical history and lead group exercises. But perhaps one of the most important elements of having robots in nursing homes, is their ability to perform reminiscence therapy. 

By looking at objects and thinking about memories from the past, this type of therapy is often used to treat severe memory loss or dementia. Family members get tired of hearing the same stories told again and again but a robot never will, Khan pointed out.

Marc Halpert, Chief Operating Officer at Monarch Healthcare Management, said that he believes the robots will increase efficiency in Monarch’s assisted living facilities. 

Right now, a new admission takes us almost 3-4 hours to complete the admission,” Halpert said. “I believe a robot can do it in 15-20 minutes. That’s gonna save time allowing our nurses more time with the residents in the home.”

Stanford University noted back in 2020 that nursing homes have been hit hard by COVID-19 and robots could be the answer. With 60% of Japan’s nursing facilities using robots, researchers have found that there is “a relatively minor impact on turnover or wages of caregivers…”

Funds for the robot and assisted living facility partnership are set to arrive Jan. 1 and Khan hopes the robots will be ready to go by March.