Jeffrey S. Upperman: USC Medical School Professor Brings Robots into Emergency Medical Settings

November 7, 2008

Jeffrey S. Upperman is the director of the Trauma Program at Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, and an associate professor of surgery at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California.

Jeffrey spoke with USC Stevens about his new Trauma Program and where his team is heading:

Help us understand what you are up to (Describe your work / research):
Recent reports document that children, a vulnerable population, are inadequately cared for in the emergency medical settings.  Some centers lack equipment, algorithms and staff to address pediatric emergency and trauma services.  We contend that the broken emergency medical service system will be ill-prepared to respond to children effectively during a disaster crisis.

Our team is currently expanding our Pediatric Disaster Resource and Training Center services by offering distance learning strategies and tele-health techniques for trauma triage.  The first phase of our project is to develop a competency curriculum in pediatric disaster preparedness and training staff on innovative technologies for teaching and treating health care workers across the region.  We have a partnered with Dr. Randall Wetzel, Director of the Virtual PICU and expanded this robotic tele-health approach into the emergency room setting.  The novelty is that these robots are mobile whereas prior published telemedicine interventions in emergency departments are fixed cameras.  We intend to test these robots in the disaster exercise training environment and support doctors and nurses remotely.

What drives you to continue pursuing this area of study?
We believe our work will not only make a difference in helping centers manage a chaotic disaster scenario but it will also assist us in delivering effective care in day-to-day emergency medical services.

Describe how your work might impact people’s lives, now and in the future. 
We hope our decision-support interventions with robots and customized decision-support tools will enhance the care provided by emergency service personnel.

How did you come up with the idea?
After watching numerous trauma centers close and the remaining centers become overwhelmed, it dawned on me that we needed to use technology in creative ways to improve clinical decision-making in the emergency room setting.

Has anyone ever doubted that your idea could work?
I don’t know.

What is the next step in the innovation process for you (and how might people help)?
We will be testing our robot corps in a regional pediatric disaster exercise. 

What mistake taught you the most?
I am not sure since I make a lot of mistakes but I keep trying…so I guess I am learning all the time.

What is the one innovation you can’t live without?
ATM card

What would people be surprised to learn about you? 
I am a C-SPAN junkie….

What do you wish you would have invented? 
ATM card

Any tips for aspiring innovators?
Don’t give up.  Believe

What is the most fun you’ve ever had?
Good question…one day I figure it out…

Three favorite things about LA:
Sun

Creative environment

Technology