Robot that takes your blood sample could provide a painless solution amid staff shortages

If you are squeamish about having blood samples drawn, you may be happy to hear about a new method approved in Europe: using a robot. The usual practice of drawing blood has changed little over the decades; it looks about the same now as it did 50 years ago. But a new device that automates blood collection has the potential to make blood draws more efficient while helping health systems deal with a shortage of phlebotomists – people trained to collect blood samples. “This all ensures high accuracy and high reliability, and with such precision it reduces any pain and discomfort associated with a normal blood draw,” says Bob Gerberich, chief commercial officer for North America at Vitestro, the Netherlands-based company that makes the device, called Aletta. The patient sits in a chair by the 1.5-metre (5ft) Aletta device, and places an arm on a sloped armrest. When the patient presses a start button, a tourniquet tightens around the arm, above the elbow. The machine uses an infrared light to locate the veins, and sprays the area with alcohol to clean it. An AI-driven ultrasound probe on a robotic arm helps select a vein and determine needle placement, then inserts the needle into the vein and collects blood into tubes. When done, it applies a bandage to the pierced area. The entire process takes about two minutes. We don’t have enough people to draw the blood, so I had to look for a solution Gregory Retzinger, a US doctor, on why he is trialing Aletta “With this device they never see the needle and they never see or experience or feel the blood tubes being changed,” Gerberich says. “That really helps with patients that are ordinarily squeamish.” The Aletta has a 95 per cent success rate when it comes to drawing usable blood on the first attempt, and the machine can be especially useful for patients who might otherwise be difficult to successfully “stick”, according to the company. The device is already approved for use in Europe for patients ages 16 and older, and the company plans to seek approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its commercial use in the US. Northwestern Memorial Hospital in the US state of Illinois is one of three sites across the country that have agreed to use the device as part of a multicentre clinical trial, Gerberich says. The device is likely to be sent to the hospital next year. Participating health systems will get several Aletta devices for a period of time before the devices are moved on to other locations taking part in the trial, with a goal of getting feedback on their use and showing how they perform. Northwestern hopes the device allows it to ensure the quality of blood samples while dealing with an ongoing shortage of phlebotomists, says Dr Gregory Retzinger, the hospital’s medical director of pathology clinical services. Although “human involvement can certainly be reassuring to a patient”, it can be difficult to find enough phlebotomists, Retzinger says. “We don’t have enough people to draw the blood, so I had to look for a solution.” In the US, employment of phlebotomists is expected to grow eight per cent between 2023 and 2033 – about double the growth rate for all occupations during that period, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. The bureau projects about 19,600 openings for phlebotomists each year, on average, over that time. The device also has a near-zero rate of haemolysis – when red blood cells break down during or after the collection process, making a sample unusable – during blood collection, according to the company. With traditional blood draws, the haemolysis rate can be as high as three to four per cent, according to published research. The cost of the device has not yet been determined, but Gerberich says health systems that use it should see savings: one healthcare worker, trained in how to use the Aletta, could be able to oversee up to three of the devices at once. Like what you read? Follow SCMP Lifestyle on Facebook, X and Instagram. You can also sign up for our eNewsletter here.

Robot that takes your blood sample could provide a painless solution amid staff shortages

A Dutch firm’s AI-powered machines that draw blood with more accuracy than humans without the patient seeing the needle to be trialled in US

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