Seoul National University Hospital (SNUH) said Tuesday that it has begun to apply robotics and teleconference to preventing secondary coronavirus infection in the hospital.

A healthcare provider in Seoul National University Hospital holds an online teleconference at his offices, to prevent secondary COVID-19 infection.

SNUH and LG Electronics signed a contract to collaborate on developing a robot in February 2019. The newly introduced robots, LG CLOi CleanBot and CLOi GuideBot, will be used to clean up the hospital and control visitors to prevent secondary infection.

LG CLoi CleanBot is applied with indoor-autonomous driving and obstacle-avoidance technology. The robot can safely sweep the floor in the hospital with complicated passages. It is also armed with an H13 high-efficiency particulate air filter that makes it possible to maintain clean surroundings.

SNUH will use the other robot, LG CLoi GuideBot, to ask basic diagnostic questions and measure the temperature of visitors. The robot’s work will reduce the risk of COVID-19 among medical providers by converting the diagnostic procedures.

“SNUH has been leading the medical community’s fight against COVID-19 by running nationally designated negative pressure rooms and emergency response ward,” SNUH Director Kim Yeon-soo said. “We are also using information and communication technologies, including video consulting and central monitoring system, to operate Mungyeong Public Medical Center in North Gyeongsang Province.”

Seoul National University Hospital is also using two robots -- LG CLoi CleanBot (left) and LG CLoi GuideBot – for the same purpose.

The hospital will continue its effort to provide a better medical environment to visitors and prevent in-hospital infection with the use of advanced technology, Kim added.

With the introduction of the robots, SNUH announced that it had converted the daily meetings held at three o’clock into the teleconference, from Monday.

SNUH expects the teleconference will significantly contribute to the prevention of COVID-19 infection among the medical workers in the hospital as well as to quick decision-making and improved work efficiency.

shim531@docdocdoc.co.kr

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