More Hospitals Relying On Robots For Cleaning

An increasing number of hospitals in the U.S. and other countries are turning to robots for cleaning and disinfecting their rooms, surgical theaters, and equipment. According to a Meticulous Research report, the International Federation of Robotics revealed the demand for cleaning robots has increased by 92% since 2020. The report also revealed that the global disinfection robotics market is expected to be worth $2.79 billion by 2028.

Disinfection robots are among the latest technologies making a difference in healthcare. They use a variety of methods to disinfect the air and surfaces in hospitals to reduce the spread of infections within those facilities. They decrease the risk of exposure to viruses and bacteria, and reduce the time and resources spent on cleaning processes. The ongoing global health crisis has been a stark reminder of the need to combat highly infectious viruses and bacteria as best we can. Find out how robots and other technology are assisting us in the fight.

Robots such as Xenex Disinfection Services’ LightStrike are being used in numerous hospitals in the US to disinfect patient and operating rooms and N95 masks. According to NS Medical Devices, Northeast Florida-based Baptist Health was one of the first healthcare providers to dedicate robots to mask cleaning and preservation. Whether they are cleaning rooms or masks, the LightStrike robots use xenon ultraviolet light to deactivate microorganisms by damaging their DNA and preventing them from mutating or multiplying.

When it comes to hospital cleaning in Philadelphia, last year, the University of Pennsylvania Health System opened an $80 million facility in Southwest Philadelphia. The Inquirer reported that the facility was constructed for the sterilization of surgical instruments such as clips, scissors, and tools used by robotic arms from the health system’s hospital and Pennsylvania Hospital. Stainless steel machines use steam from purified water to clean the instruments before they are repackaged and returned to the hospitals.

It’s not only hospitals on the east coast that are using robots for cleaning and disinfecting rooms and surfaces. According to the Washington Post and Crunchbase, Sharp Grossmont Hospital in San Francisco’s San Diego County, the Mayo Clinic Health System and the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, as well as numerous other facilities also use LightStrike robots.

Technology is playing an important role in keeping Singapore’s Alexandra Hospital clean and disinfected. According to Hospital Management Asia, the hospital’s head of support operations, Colin Tan, said the facility uses robots to support housekeeping staff who face an increased workload. The robots focus on general cleaning such as floor scrubbing in high-traffic areas such as corridors and walkways in the hospital’s clinics and wards. Tan said the hospital’s cleaning employees also use simpler technology such as mops with disposable or reusable microfiber pads that can be cleaned with bleach. According to the publication, 16-split blended microfiber can remove 99.9% of viruses and bacteria.

Dr Birgit Graf of Fraunhofer IPA told Health Europa that a multidisciplinary team of researchers are working on a Mobile Disinfectant project. The project hopes to use robotics technologies to prevent the spread of infections in hospitals and clinics, and to transport essential items. Dr Graf said researchers are working on two service robots to disinfect potentially contaminated surfaces such as floors, counters, and switches, as well as various means of transportation. She added that researchers will also look at ways to automate the transport of various materials in clinics to counteract the possibility of workers spreading germs.