As the entire world is busy containing the coronavirus pandemic, hospitals in the United Kingdom have started using robots to kill the deadly pathogen. These robots that use advanced cutting-edge technology will buzz around hospitals like Star Wars' R2-D2 to destroy killer pathogens.
Deployment of Robots to Kill Coronavirus
According to a report published in Daily Star, these £71,000 roaming robots will be used to clean operation theaters in the hospitals to prevent a possible spread of COVID-19. These machines powered with batteries will also roam across corridors and will emit UV-C light that will kill germs effectively. These robots standing at five-and-a-half-foot tall have wheels at the bottom, and roam across corridors and patients' rooms to make them germ-free.
According to UVD Robots, the manufacturers of these machines, viruses can be killed within 10 or 15 minutes using them. Hospitals in Derby and Burton will be the first healthcare facilities in the globe to make use of these robots to kill coronavirus. Hospitals in Nice and Boston are also planning to deploy these robots in the coming days to sanitize the interiors.
"We're really pleased and excited to have these new UVD Robots available at our Trust. This state-of-the-art technology will allow us to enhance our excellent, existing environmental cleaning service, and keep our hospitals safe for our patients, including those who are most vulnerable. This is a tried and tested technology in environmental disinfection and will enable us to keep key clinical areas, such as Theatres, well disinfected and safe for our patients," said Helen Forrest, an Infection Prevention and Control Lead Nurse, Daily Star reports.
Dan Harding, managing director of Sychem; UK Distributor for UVD Robots revealed that UV disinfection is one of the most effective ways to destroy pathogens that include coronavirus. He added that the robots they developed are completely autonomous, which could help the healthcare sector to effectively contain the coronavirus.
Coronavirus Statistics in the United Kingdom
According to the latest updates, there are more than 16 million coronavirus positive cases in the world, and the death toll has already crossed 648,000. In the United Kingdom alone, there are 298,681 positive cases, and the country now stands at the 10th place in the pandemic's chaos chart.
The United States is the worst affected country due to the COVID-19 outbreak with more than four million positive cases and 148,000 deaths.
