The latest group of medical students now have another tool to help make medical procedures better and more efficient through innovative training. “Patrick,” the robotic butt, provides a chance for medical students to practice simulated prostate exams with feedback in real time.
Thanks to force sensors, Patrick is also able to indicate when a student is being too aggressive and how thorough each student was. Because of the intensely personal nature of these exams, Patrick provides the perfect “practice run” to sharpen skills before conducting a prostate exam on a real-life patient.
This robotic butt is so advanced, in fact, that “he” is also able to emotionally interact with the student examining him. He can voice opinions, fears and concerns about the procedure, which helps present a very realistic patient encounter and sharpen bedside manner skills.
“Consider this,” Dr. Benjamin Lok, one of the program’s designers, said, “how would a medical student know if they are doing a good prostate exam? Currently it is impossible for the educator to gauge performance. This simulation provides performance, feedback, and an opportunity to learn and lower anxiety.”
We couldn’t agree more. After all, wouldn’t you want your (future) doctors to practice on a robotic butt before it was time for your exam? (That’s what we thought.) Read more about Patrick and all the benefits of this new tool here or check out the video below.
