Serious illness can often lead to long hospital stays, bringing a sense of isolation that feels like a “double burden” for patients. The Beam® telepresence solution helps bridge the gap, keeping family and social connections alive while breaking isolation.
Breaking the isolation of hospitalized patients
Allowing hospitalized patients to stay connected with their loved ones daily, even during long hospital stays, is one of the key ways the Beam® telepresence robot fosters inclusion.
Placed in the family home, Beam® enables users to connect from the hospital and take part in everyday moments, staying close to their loved ones despite the distance.
Some patients have a robot at school or university, and occasionally participate in events offered within the Awabot community.
+ 20 000
users all around the world
15
years of telepresence dedicated to educational and social inclusion
Awabot keeps hospitalized patients connected with their loved ones by providing:
- A complete telepresence solution, including the Beam® telepresence robot, access to the telepresence service, a control kit with a computer for the patient, and optional 4G connectivity.
- Project coordination through Awabot Smile Manager, a dedicated platform for deploying and managing the robot fleet.
- User support, featuring training sessions for a smooth and effective onboarding experience.
VIK-e Program: being present at home from a hospital room
For many years, the company has been involved in the VIK-e program, led by the Léon Bérard Center in Lyon, a cancer treatment center.
Launched in 2016, the VIK-e program (Victory in Innovation for Kids – electronic) provides telepresence robots to reduce the isolation of hospitalized children and young people, helping them maintain emotional connections with their loved ones and easing their return home by mitigating the sense of separation caused by hospitalization.
Beam® Telepresence : 3 benefits for maintaining connections
Launched in 2016, the exploratory study highlighted numerous benefits for children, their parents, and healthcare providers:
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For the children, maintaining their role within the family, from which they may sometimes feel excluded, allows them to stay connected with their siblings during hospitalization.
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For the parents, there is a positive impact on the psychological well-being of their children.
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For the healthcare providers, they note that “the child can be happy to show them their environment,” including their home and siblings.
”"I can finally spend time with my sister and brother. At Christmas, for example, I helped my sister decorate the tree, from a distance, of course. And most importantly, I can enjoy many moments with my family, like during meals, even though I'm not at home. These are moments of joy I wouldn't have had without this robot."
Thibaut, 12 years old
“Maintaining family and social connections during extended hospital stays is very important.
This system shows that their illness is neither a barrier nor an obstacle to their social life in the three areas we have chosen: family, friends, and school.
We want to reduce the sense of marginalization they experience because of their illness.“
Dr. Perrine Marec-Bérard – Pediatrician / Oncology, Léon Bérard Center, Lyon
The ideal solution for maintaining family and social connections: Beam®
Beam® is the leading reference for mobile telepresence robots in maintaining family and social connections.
