A Chinese robot named Xiaoyi recently became the first machine to pass a medical licensing exam, according to a recent story in China Daily, the largest English-language newspaper in China. The robot scored 456 points out of 600 (a passing score is 360) to pass the written section of China's national medical licensing examination, which the article called an "essential" entrance exam for doctors. The robot can automatically capture data and analyze patient information to make initial diagnoses, the article said, and it will be used to assist doctors to make future treatment more efficient. The robot is set to launch in March 2018, said  the chair of iFlytek, the company that designed Xiaoyi, adding that the robot is "not meant to replace doctors." General practitioners are, however, in short supply in China's rural areas, and the article noted that the company hopes the addition of robots can help bring quality healthcare to more people. A November 27, 2017, article in medGadget noted that Xiaoyi, which means "little doctor" in Chinese, scored only 100 points on a practice test, but improved because it has the ability to learn and make judgments. To prepare for the exam, Xiaoyi processed "dozens of medical textbooks, 2 million medical records, and 400,000 articles," medGadget said. This helped Xiaoyi do well on questions that required memorization and information recall; however, the robot did not score as well in the parts of the tests that involved answering questions about patient cases.

HRC Recommends: Risk managers should remain alert to emerging technologies that can affect patient care and safety. As with any new technology, healthcare organizations must evaluate the technology's risks and benefits to patient care. If a technology such as the robotic technology described above becomes ready for adoption, before implementing it healthcare organizations must evaluate the ease of integrating the technology into its workflows, as well as the possibility that new technology may introduce new errors in patient care.