Concord (N.H.) Hospital has started using two ultraviolet light-emitting robots to disinfect rooms and reduce healthcare-associated infections, according to a Concord Monitor report.
It is the first hospital in the state to use such a robot, according to the report.
The robots, named Rosie and Wally, pulse UV light, which kills bacteria and other fungi. Concord Hospital uses the robots to specifically target Clostridium difficile. If a patient is positive for C. diff, one of the robots will disinfect his or her bathroom right away. After discharge and regular cleaning, a robot is used again to disinfect the rest of the room, according to the report.
"Other things kill the germs, but this is just, we know for sure that we've killed them," Lynda Caine, the hospital's infection prevention officer, told the Concord Monitor. Since implementing the first UV light robot last year, the hospital's C. diff rates have dropped, she said.
Treating just one case of C. diff can cost the hospital $25,000, while each robot costs $75,000, according to the report.
A third robot is set to arrive at the hospital later this year.
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