Forget waiting in line outside clinics, now get diagnosed sitting at home

And if you have to see a GP in person, you won't be at the doctor's surgery for long.

Online services, such as the website 1stavailable, are doing for the medical profession what Wotif did for the hotel industry, by letting people book a doctor's time online, News.com.au reported.

"It's quite an exciting stage - the world's about to change. We'll be able to collaboratively manage our health. There won't be waiting rooms full of people anymore. He or her will come to you, or you'll have a very clearly defined time slot if you need to have a human interaction with someone," Professor Jeffrey Soar, chair of Human Centred Technology Innovation at the University of Southern Queensland said.

He said that advances in robotics and home appliances, similar to the capabilities of LG's internet-capable refrigerator, will have a profound impact on our lives.

Families will be able to tap into data from household appliances to check elderly relatives are OK.

For example, your grandfather's refrigerator could inform the family if he has no food in the house.

That's not all. Korean robots have been designed to feed the sick, Prof Soar said, and medicine cabinets that can instruct on what pills to take are on their way.

Teams at the University of Technology, Sydney,

... contd.