Meet Teme: The Friendly Robot Revolutionizing NHS Health Checks!

In Scotland, a new robot is being tested to help with health checks at a doctor's office. Ged Cashley, who is 72 years old, has to visit his doctor every year because he had a heart attack in 2018. This year, his visit was different because his doctor's office in Dundee is trying out a robot called Teme. Teme is about three feet tall and moves around the waiting room. It helps patients by doing basic health checks like measuring blood pressure, checking oxygen levels, and weighing them before they see the doctor. Ged said, 'It's a bit odd at first, but you soon get used to it. '

The robot greets patients and takes them to a special room. It explains how to use the blood pressure cuff and where to put their arm. After the checks, Teme prints out the results so the patient can give them to the nurse or doctor. Dr. Gillian Chin, Ged's doctor, believes robots like Teme can help doctors and nurses see more patients and spend more time talking to them about their health. She said that using the robot saved about 50 percent of the time usually needed for these checks.

The trial involved 12 patients with heart problems. Most people liked the robot, but some worried about privacy and did not want to talk to the robot in the waiting room. Robots and artificial intelligence are already used in some hospitals to help doctors do surgeries and find diseases like cancer. Some people are concerned that robots might make mistakes or take away jobs, but experts say robots are meant to help doctors and nurses, not replace them. The people who make these robots hope they will be used more in the future to do simple tasks, so doctors and nurses can focus on caring for patients. The government is also investing in new technology to help people get better care faster, but some experts say there needs to be a national plan to use robots in healthcare.