Virtual Reality and the Healthcare Market
Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality is no longer a technology for gaming alone. The marketplace for Virtual and Augmented Reality in Healthcare is growing at an exponential rate. In 2020, Virtual Reality applications in Healthcare are estimated at almost $4 billion dollars. By 2025, that number is expected to reach over 6 billion. As it grows, new applications for Virtual Reality and Augmented reality are being discovered every day.
This article will explore 5 ways Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality applications are used within Healthcare. We’ll highlight a few VR / AR use cases that are changing the lives of patients and medical practitioners.
1.) Virtual and Augmented Reality Training:
When it comes to Medical training, there’s never a lack of a need for new tools. And, every day medical practitioners to are search for additional means to gain experience. Traditionally, students learn through text books, lectures and by working on cadavers. Today, Virtual Reality tools allow medical students to experience the Human body like never before.
Modern VR tools, such as “Medical Realities” and “StriVR”, allow students to view real life surgical procedures. Using 360 degree ultra high definition video, these tools offer end-to-end immersive platforms. With these Virtual Reality tools, students and practitioners experience first hand what it is like to take an Objective Structured Clinical Exams and even practice procedural steps through Virtual Reality.
OssoVR, another training tool, is transforming surgical and training assessment programs. It allows students to practice procedures Virtually hands-on. By utilizing simulated Virtual environments, VR tools are allowing students to practice through spaced-repetition, and then measure skill through online.
Other tools use AR technology to superimpose computer-generated imagery onto a surgeon’s field of view. ARAS offers practitioners real-time information overlaid onto a patient’s internal organs during surgery. Tools, such as ARAS, are used for training, operation prep, and during the procedure itself. They provide physicians with enhanced operative experiences and better rates of success.
2.) Virtual Reality to aid Patient Education and Disease Awareness
Traditionally, understanding a patient’s mindset and / or gaining empathy for a patient’s condition was difficult. Through new tools, patients, family, students, and practitioners can now step into a reconstruction of a patient’s anatomy & pathology. With these tools individuals can see the world through the simulated eyes of a Dementia patient. They can experience the symptoms of a migraine sufferer first hand. And, they can view the world through the eyes of patient with Alzheimers.
Now, VR allows individuals to empathize with a patient’s symptoms first hand. Companies such as Embodied Labs have developed VR experiences to train caregivers and students on Lewy body dementia (LBD). Known as the Dima Lab, users experience different types of dementia-related conditions through the lives of multiple individuals. By allowing caregivers to virtually step into the life of someone experiencing dementia, Parkinson’s disease, and movement disorders, Virtual Reality allows us to better understand the human condition and understand patients like never before.
3.) Pain Management and Physical Therapy in VR
Virtual Reality in Healthcare is helping individuals to better understand and help one another mentally. it can also patients physically. Past and recent studies have shown that VR can help patients in physical therapy situations. Supplying a distraction that helps to reduce pain and speed recovery times, VR supplies a non medically induced distraction mechanism. In one application, patients treated for burns look into VR googles to distract them from the procedure at hand. During procedures, VR goggles substitute the real world with synthetic computer-generated images from an illusory 3D virtual world of Snow.
The ability to allow patients to immerse themselves in VR environments while performing daily exercises has also shown to help patients stay more focused and mentally healthy while experiencing long recovery times. The ability to allow patients to train in an environment that is as close to the real world as possible is shown to facilitate recovery and increase engagement.
4.) Hospice Care and Stress Reduction using VR and AR
Long term hospitalization or quarantine can have significant emotional and psychological impacts on an individual. The stress of the environment, one’s own health, or the pain associated with one’s condition can lead to depression, boredom, and personal health issues. One key benefit of the application of Virtual and Augmented Reality in Healthcare is the ability to alleviate these conditions through virtual games or interactive environments or experiences. Giving patients confined to a hospital room or bed the ability to stroll a forest trail, swim with dolphins, or experience a baseball game are only a few ways virtual Reality can help in stressful situations.
With end of life patients, and those in Hospice, VR has also allowed patients to leave the confines of their restricted environments through the use of 360 immersive video and Virtual environments. Patients confined to bed rest and unable to leave their homes have the opportunity to view remote destinations and experience the outdoors. Allowing patients the ability to reach outside of their immediate environment, explore destinations they once only imagined, and to fulfill dreams and goals still left unfulfilled.
5.) Medical Marketing using Virtual and Augmented Reality
One of the most popular applications for VR in Healthcare, Medical Marketing, is a powerful and effective tool for organizations both large and small. As Vr devices loose the cords and become more compact and accessible, the ability to bring interactive experiences to trade show floors, offer interactive MOA applications, build educational experiences for consumers, and even offer early Virtual tours of future medical equipment, facilities and product demos is becoming easier then ever. When it comes to Medical Marketing opportunities, the options are expansive and only limited to the minds of the creators.
Whether you’re allowing trade show visitors to step into the shoes of an individual with Dementia, using Augmented reality to place a product into a physical space, or allowing a customer to interact with a Virtual Covid19 virus, Medical Marketing Virtual Reality experiences can offer a unique and engaging method to connect users and Medical Brands.
Conclusion
An ever evolving technology, virtual reality is continually helping the healthcare marketplace to grow and create new and unique opportunities for students, practitioners, and brands alike. If you’d like to learn more about how to apply Virtual Reality applications to your business or marketplace, contact us now to set up a free consultation and connect with our team.
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