Tuesday, April 18, 2006

Meet Noelle, the Pregnant Robot



Noelle, the first lifelike, birthing simulator is being used in a growing number of medical schools and hospital maternity wards.

The full-sized mannequin is in demand because medicine is rapidly abandoning the ethically questionable centuries-old tradition of using patients as guinea pigs, turning instead to high-tech simulations.

The Institute of Medicine estimates that as many as 98,000 U.S. patients die annually from preventable medical errors. Obviously, it's better to make a mistake on a $20,000 robot than a live patient -- Other companies make lifelike mannequins to train paramedics in emergencies, but Noelle appears to be the only high-tech, pregnant model available. Noelle models range from a $3,200 basic version to a $20,000 computerized Noelle that best approximates a live birth.


[image from http://ctheory.concordia.ca/hacking/pregnant.html]

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

I saw that in the news yesterday - my first thought is that I wanna play with one!

I also wonder how they work for c-sections; how do they repair them after?

Linda MacDonald Glenn said...

Love your blog, Kelly!

Sarah said...

OMG! How eerie.
As if childbirth needed to be more medicalised by the addition of Noelle!

Very interesting blog, I shall check in regularly.
You might find mine of interest:
http://www.sazziesblog.blogspot.com

A student said...

I was aware that there were models for all matter of health issues, but not pregnant women.

Although this could be considered more medicalization of womens bodies I think that this also captures the importance of Doctors actually knowing what they are doing rather than learning on pregnant women. If women are going to have babies in hospitals (which around 80% in Canada do)- at least they won't be experimented on.

ps: love the blog

Anonymous said...

HI

It is a great post and I like it

Anonymous said...

Hi

This is a very natural about a human and it is different to other all thing which are also natural. For example a man meet to his wife and it main factor of children birth and in this used all things in the shape of natural.