A well-thought-out adoption of properly designed solutions in the field of robotisation and automation may contribute to improving selected areas of hospital operations in Poland.
– As part of the planned scientific activity, I intend to conduct nationwide questionnaire surveys in healthcare organisations – says Julia Siderska, PhD, from the International Chair of Logistics and Service Engineering at the Faculty of Engineering Management of Bialystok University of Technology, and at the same time Vice-Dean for Student Affairs and Education at this Faculty. – The main objective of my scientific activity is to identify tasks and operational processes with potential for intelligent automation in healthcare organisations in Poland, as well as to identify and classify the factors determining the adoption of such solutions.
Artificial intelligence enables healthcare organisations to streamline routine processes and tasks, optimise workflows, reduce costs, accelerate patient service and effectively analyse large volumes of clinical data. It also supports data-driven decision-making, allowing employees to focus on activities of a more strategic nature.
– Automation, including the robotisation of operational processes, can significantly relieve staff, improve workflows, enhance the quality of care and increase the operational efficiency of medical facilities – argues Siderska, PhD. – Properly designed IA solutions have the potential to support the transformation of hospitals and contribute to their sustainable development.
Intelligent automation (IA) is recognised as a key direction of development in the area of operational process automation. By combining RPA technologies, artificial intelligence and soft computing methods, IA enables the creation of context-aware, adaptive and customised automation solutions, thereby achieving an unprecedented level of operational efficiency. This is particularly important in the healthcare sector, which is struggling with a global shortage of workers, high operating costs, a growing number of patients and numerous administrative obligations.
– The processes of implementing robotisation in healthcare entities to support and relieve employees are inevitable – believes Siderska, PhD. – This is determined by staff shortages, rising labour costs and the need to operate across many IT systems. Hospital staff, both medical and administrative, are overloaded with data entry and analysis. These factors negatively affect efficiency and quality of patient care, process management and overall operational performance of organisations.
The World Health Organization predicts that the global shortage of healthcare workers may reach 12.9 million specialists by 2035 (World Health Organization, 2023). Healthcare is an area with great potential in terms of using robots to automate administrative work, especially in situations of staff shortages. The healthcare industry also faces other serious challenges, including high operating costs, inefficient and repetitive processes, stringent regulatory requirements and a growing number of patients.
Compiled by: Jerzy Doroszkiewicz