Doctor uses robot to tell patient he's going to die

FREMONT, Calif. — It can be difficult to hear that a loved one is dying.

But a California woman is upset with a hospital where she learned her grandfather was dying from a doctor on a video-screen.

Annalisia Wilharm was bedside with her grandfather at the Kaiser-Permanente Medical Center in Fremont when the machine rolled into their room and a doctor, appearing via live video link, offered his prognosis.

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Wilharm says getting the news from a screen was horrible for her and her grandfather. She also said the hospital should have had more dignity and compassion.

Ernest Quintana, 78, died the next day.

A spokesperson says the hospital regrets falling short of the family's expectations.

The hospital also said a doctor had spoken to them in person earlier that day and pointed out that the device wasn't really a robot.

CNN