Cute, smart robots may help fill future caregiving void
With the rapidly increasing gray nation in America and the shortage of caregivers, “socially assistive” robots can serve as a solution as they can aid elders by providing them with reminders for their medications, help keep them active, maintain their health and offer support. During the 2018 World Robotics Conference which was held last summer in Beijing, many of these adorable, interesting and smart robots were showcased including iPal, ElliQ and Paro. Their abilities to provide social support and companionship is what makes these robots so special, however, empathy and kindness are features that cannot be uploaded to these robots, but are intrinsic to humans. Nevertheless, elderly people are quite open in trying new technology and the social benefits that can be reap from these technological advancements could potentially be greater than what we expect.
The full article can be found here.
Leave a Comments