Friend or foe: robots in the NHS

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In the same week that the right of centre UK think tank Reform said that tens of thousands of NHS staff could fall victim to the march of the machine, the Science Museum in London opened a timely exhibition: Robots.

The Reform report says that artificial intelligence can already outperform humans at some diagnoses and routine surgical procedures and is more efficient at collecting information.1

As clinicians digested this controversial message, the museum opened its doors to a gathering of more than 100 robots, from the first stuttering machines to those being built today, including this one modelled on the human musculoskeletal system. It can move just like humans but over time experiences familiar problems, such as worn-out joints, that could help future treatment and diagnosis.