Nurses could soon be tasked with performing surgery with the help of robots and other forms of artificial intelligence, a new report predicts.
The Times reported Friday on the study that looked at the next 20 years of surgical procedures. The findings suggest that doctors could be freed from performing what are seen as routine surgeries because of the rise in AI.
Replacing the steady hand of a surgeon, for example, could be nanarobots that repair the body from the inside and virtual reality headsets worn by nurses and other medical professionals to assist in procedures. 3-D printed organs could also be mass produced for use when they are needed, the Royal College of Surgeons report said.
"We're standing on the verge of transformative changes in surgery that have the potential to dramatically improve patients' care, helping them to live healthier lives for longer," neurosurgeon Richard Kerr said in the report, according to the Times.
"We are now moving from the era of freehand surgery to the digitalization of surgery — where surgeons are supported by data, genomic analysis, and new tools such as robotics."
Robots are already used for medical training, and other industries have embraced the technology in recent years as the world turns to automation to get things done.