Nurses’ View towards the Use of Robotic during Pandemic COVID-19 in Indonesia: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

Background: Rapid advances in artificial intelligence and robotics have alleviated difficulties for patients, hospitals, and the industry as a whole. However, the health care system is identically human-centered at its core, and many healthcare professions may not be ready to work with robots. Understanding nurses' views toward robotics can help integrate robotic technologies into future patient care. Objectives: This study aimed to explore how nurses view using robotics during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: This study used a qualitative descriptive technique to registered nurses who provide direct care to the patients with COVID-19 recruited from two hospitals in Indonesia. Purposive sampling was used to select respondents with criteria of those who had worked for at least one year and were willing to participate—the analysis used qualitative content analysis. Results: A total of 20 female nurses with an average age of 32.8 ± 4.0 years participated in this study. The qualitative findings revealed three themes with nine sub-themes, namely the use of robotic in nursing care (sub-theme: reducing the risk of COVID-19 transmission, monitoring patients remotely, and helping in providing care), the burden of using robotic in nursing care (sub-theme: digital literacy in nursing care, culture difference in providing care, changing care practice habits, and safety concern, and attitude toward robotic in nursing care (sub-theme: negative response). Conclusions: This study explored nurses' views on the usage of robotics during the pandemic COVID-10. It implies that a strategic plan would have many benefits and limitations, such as nursing care burden, negative attitude, and cultural awareness.