Should humans put their trust and lives in the hands of technology and robotic surgeons?
Screenplay
Charlie McKee
​
“The Needle of a Robot”
LOS ANGELES HOSPITAL WAITING ROOM - LATE AFTERNOON
MOM and DAD are eagerly awaiting the doctor's final analysis of their boy in the waiting room. MOM and DAD grow more and more anxious for the soon to come news, and at this moment full of dread, MOM and DAD hear the doctor’s footsteps.
DAD
(Rushes to the door as the doctor enters the room. MOM follows)
How is he? What's going on? Is my son going to be okay?
DOCTOR
(halting the father)
There is good news and bad news
DAD
(sighs in despair and devastation)
What's the bad news?
DOCTOR
(stops and catches her breath before speaking)
Your boy has suffered serious damage to his ribcage and pelvis. We see a total of six fractures between the two areas. Four in the ribcage and two in the pelvis. However, there is also potential damage to the stomach and lungs and even some internal bleeding. Your boy is scheduled first thing in the morning to undergo an operation.
MOM
(gasps, cries, and squeezes her husbands arm tightly)
What’s the good news?
DOCTOR
Your son will be one of the first to undergo a robot-led operation.
DAD
MOM
(caught in a moment of shock)
WHAT?!
WHAT?!
DAD
I’m sorry doctor did you just say that my son’s life will be in the hands of some claws and wires?!
DOCTOR
(smirks and chuckles light-heartedly)
No, not exactly, robotic surgery is actually safer for operations such as the one your son will undergo.
MOM
(in registered disbelief)
How on earth is it safer for my son’s life to be in the hands of a computer than an experienced surgeon?
DOCTOR
The robot is capable of so much more than any experienced surgeon. A surgeon-- no matter how experienced-- is not able to get into small crevices without making large incisions. A robot can. “It gets into the mouth, the tongue, the rib cage, where previously a surgeon simply could not move to work. Robots mean you can do complex operations in very narrow spaces” (“Enter the World”). “This not only reduces the risk of infection, but it also increases a patient's rate of recovery” (Houldcroft).
DAD
(still in confusion)
That’s all great doc, but I still don’t understand how a computer would be better at making split moment decisions than a trained surgeon. Especially in the case of our son's life.
MOM
(jumping in)
We’d much prefer a real surgeon to save our son's life today. Not some sheet metal.
DOCTOR
(pauses MOM and DAD politely)
I do apologize for not making this clear. The operation will be performed by a robot, but the robot is controlled 100% by a real surgeon. Think of the robot more as a tool than a surgeon.
MOM
(rudely interrupting the doctor)
So where is the surgeon? We'd like to talk to him about all of this.
DOCTOR
(slightly hesitant to speak)
Well, the surgeon is not here.
DAD
(stern and impatient)
Where is he?
DOCTOR
(slightly fearful of what’s to come from MOM and DAD next)
He is in a room somewhere in Newcastle, England.
MOM
(enraged)
How are we supposed to place our trust in someone we aren’t going to meet?!
DOCTOR
(calm and composed)
I know the thought is scary. But rest assured that the world’s most brilliant doctors have been developing this technology for nearly two decades. All of them put their trust in this technology. So if you need someone to trust, trust them.
DAD
(in disbelief)
Bring us the Cheif Surgeon now!
END OF SCENE
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Annotated Bibliography
"Enter the World of the NHS's Robotic Surgeons" Evening Chronicle, 8 May 2014, p. 8. ProQuest, www.search.proquest.com/docview/1523665326?accountid=338.
In this paper, a committee of Indian science researchers detail the recent efforts in the robotics community and discuss the working mechanics of current robotic surgery technologies and their capabilities. This will be useful to me for my screenplay as the doctor works to comfort the parents with the reliability, practicality, and reasoning behind using the robotic surgeon.
Houldcroft, Louella. "This is Robot, He'll be Your Surgeon: [01A Edition]." Journal, 14 Jun 2003, pp. 8. ProQuest, www.search.proquest.com/docview/350635348? accountid=338.
This paper acts as an excellent introduction to many aspects of robotic surgery. The work describes how the robots came to be, how they operate, their capabilities, and even includes real-life examples of their work. The paper will be useful to me as the paper touches on multiple aspects in an easy to understand format that I can use at any point in either of my upcoming projects.