Lower Saxony’s Economics and Digital Minister Olaf Lies (SPD) hopes that digitalization and robotics will bring new perspectives for care. Innovations are important in order to address demographic change, said Lies, according to a statement from Diakonie Niedersachsen on Wednesday at the Johanniter-Stift in Hanover. During the visit, a social robot was demonstrated to the minister. The residents of the nursing home benefited from interacting with the robot, said Lies. At the same time, AI-supported technology could help relieve the burden on nursing staff.
The Lower Saxony Diakonie boss Hans-Joachim Lenke was also impressed. The social robot is “an important component in activating the residents and often increases their well-being.” Nursing staff are already being supported in documentation by voice apps or by radar- and AI-supported care robots. The assistant robot recognizes patient positions and movements through doors and walls and notifies nursing staff when help is needed, explained Lenke. “This is real progress, also in terms of nursing safety.”
