Robots Save Lives in the Canadian North

Saskatchewan has seen the establishing of a remote medicine program using advances in telecommunication, robotics, medical sensor technology and artificial intelligence (AI) that has opened the door for solutions to the challenge of delivering remote, real-time health care to underserviced rural and remote populations.

The program focuses on the care of the most vulnerable populations, such as acutely ill children, pregnant women and the elderly, says Ivar Mendez of the University of Saskatchewan on Nunatsiaq News.

Results from the program show that with this technology about 70 per cent of acutely ill children can be successfully treated in their own communities. In similar communities without this technology, all acutely ill children need to be transported to a tertiary care centre.