A ‘social robot’ called Mario is part of a new project to improve patient-family communication in paediatric settings, and the kids involved have already christened the robot SuperMario.

The robot — real, not digital — is part of Care Connect, a project developed by the SFI research centre at NUIG, which also uses a video conference platform to connect patients in care to their families during the pandemic.

Hospital patients around the world have been unable to have visitors during the Covid-19 pandemic, with children especially affected, and the Care Connect project is building on ICU FamilyLink, a system implemented in the first wave of Covid-19 at University Hospital Galway to connect patients in critical care to their families. 

The idea is, according to the SFI research centre Cúram, to extend beyond the Intensive Care Unit to other healthcare settings affected by Covid-19 while also looking to the future use of telemedicine. Existing technology, including teleconferencing platforms, social robots, and digital tools, have been adopted rapidly since Covid-19, according to Cúram.

Project lead Prof Derek O’Keeffe said: "The pandemic has restricted patients’ families from visiting them in hospital and healthcare settings. Communication is a vital part of providing medical care and addressing patients' biopsychosocial needs and those of their families. 

In Association with

"The Care Connect project also builds on our NUI Galway experience in healthcare robotics using the MARIO platform, which was an EU-funded project led by my collaborator Professor Dympna Casey. Our first study will be using social robot Mario with our video-conferencing platform to improve patient-family communications in paediatrics, where the children have already nicknamed him SuperMario. 

“We will examine the efficacy of using our system to remotely educate parents and family members about the management of newly diagnosed acute medical conditions, such as Type 1 Diabetes.”

The project is supported by Cisco, whose country manager Shane Heraty added: "Helping people remain connected throughout this unprecedented time, and in these challenging circumstances, is something that we are incredibly proud of. This project and our partnership with Cúram brings the perfect blend of expertise together to enable us to have a direct and significant impact on patient wellbeing.”