Introduction to Immersive Technologies in Healthcare
Patients of all ages find hospitals terrifying and depressing, especially children in need of long-term treatments. Apart from the constant poking and prodding, strict hospital rules make the experience unpleasant for the youngest patients. Thankfully, researchers and pediatric specialists are exploring virtual and augmented reality initiatives to enhance patient care. Healthcare professionals are using immersive technologies for various purposes—from staff training to patient engagement. Virtual and augmented reality developers are also doing their part to contribute to patient care. Together with medical professionals, they’ve been exploring latest ways to supply pediatric patients with fun and unforgettable experiences.
Reducing Pain and Anxiety in Treatments
Virtual and augmented reality have come a good distance. These immersive technologies have turn out to be powerful enough to supply comfort and relief throughout painful and ugly procedures. For example, VR and AR innovations have aided young patients who undergo gastroenterology procedures, chemotherapy, and blood draws. AppliedVR produces digital solutions for virtual reality therapeutics (VRx). They aim to enhance the clinical outcomes of patients with serious medical conditions using immersive solutions. Around 200,000+ hospitals have implemented their VR solutions, including Boston Children’s Hospital and Cedars-Sinai. Both children’s hospitals use VR headsets to assist their young patients address the pain, anxiety, and stress of their treatments. For instance, they let kids play Bear Blast before procedures to calm their nerves. AppliedVR offers a big selection of games, movies, animations, and guided meditations, making this system suitable not only for teenagers but for patients of all ages.
Adjusting to the Hospital Environment
The hospital is the last place you should be in case you’re a baby. Rooms are cramped, stressful, and no fun in any respect. Augmented and virtual reality are making the experience less overwhelming for the young ones. Take Chilzone for instance. Early-Adopter developed this unique platform to enhance pediatric care. It makes the dreary partitions of a hospital room come to life. Chilzone utilizes a big selection of digital technologies, from immersive technologies to 3D printing. It allows patients to tap into their creativity and natural curiosity. Moreover, it makes them feel comfortable and in command of their situation. One of their first creations was a program called Secret Garden. It places young patients in virtual environments, allowing them to see the people and places they love. Early-Adopter believes that immersive technology has the capability to alleviate anxiety and aid in rehabilitation. Furthermore, they imagine it has the potential to diminish dependence on pain medication.
Creating Engaging Therapy Sessions
Children within the autism spectrum require special attention. They are easily overwhelmed by visual distractions and noises during therapy sessions. As a result, care providers often struggle to show kids with special needs essential social and communication skills. Floreo, a virtual reality platform, addresses this challenge. It helps kids with Autism Spectrum Disorder learn a wide selection of social skills through fun and fascinating activities. Adults with ASD might also profit from this application. Instead of delivering therapy in the standard constrained environment, Floreo places kids with special needs in virtual environments. Parents and therapists can supervise the immersive experience, guiding young learners as they progress. Using Floreo, patients can play games and interact in activities where they’ll explore social connections. They can learn calming techniques as well. Floreo only implements science-backed lessons into their platform. Schools, therapy practices, and various households across the country are already using Floreo.
Additional Tools for Social-Emotional Skills
Meanwhile, kids equipped with Google Glass can explore Brain Power’s suite of AR-based apps to practice social-emotional skills that may strengthen their self-reliance. These gamified apps include Emotion Charades, where the player learns emotion decoding by selecting the emoji that corresponds to their partner’s facial features. The Face2Face app helps them practice making eye contact and being attentive to other people’s faces. For kids who struggle with managing transitions, Transition Master takes them on a 360-degree walkthrough of unfamiliar places to organize them for his or her actual visit. Achieving goals on all these apps earns players points and lets them level up, very like they might while playing a video game. Except as an alternative of looking down at a smartphone or tablet, they’re looking up and actively engaging with their care providers and peers.
Conclusion
Immersive technologies are reshaping patient experiences and enhancing therapeutic intervention. However, its best feature is its capability to let children be children, even amidst the hardest times of their lives. With the widespread adoption of virtual and augmented reality headsets, pediatric hospitals all over the world can provide children the care they deserve. As these technologies proceed to evolve, we will expect to see much more progressive solutions that prioritize the comfort, well-being, and happiness of young patients. By harnessing the facility of immersive technologies, we will create a more compassionate and effective healthcare system that supports the unique needs of kids and families.
