University of Iowa Health Care uses the Homerus robot in dispensing medications to its many hospitalized patients. The technology used to power this robot includes several safeguards to ensure the right medication is given. It also provides university of Iowa pharmacists with more time to spend caring for their patients:

"The intent here is really two-fold," said Paul Abramowitz, Ph.D., UI Pharmaceutical Care Director, "safety and allowing pharmacists to focus their time on medication therapy itself."

The robot houses 15-thousand doses of medications at once. Using bar-code technology, the robot provides vital information for each medication, including the type of drug, the prescribed dosage and the expiration date. It does all this in a fraction of the time it used to take:

"So basically what the robot does in a period of maybe five or six hours is the work of a team of six or seven people in providing those medications for those patients, said Abramowitz.

Eventually, this technology will enable nurses to use bar-code scanners to double-check medications for their patients – right at the bedside. It’s a hi-tech process that health care providers hope will continue to improve patient care.