VR tool shows paediatric patients a 3D tour of their body

A new tool uses VR to help young patients understand and be less afraid of undergoing medical procedures

Virtual Reality tools are innovating the medical industry in many ways, helping both patients and professionals. For example, researchers in the UK are combining VR with brain scans to help people with autism. Another example is researchers from the US and Spain using VR to aid stroke victims with their recovery. Now, a new tool from Canada uses VR to show children the insides of their bodies. Through this visual tour, HealthVoyager aims to put paediatric patients at ease by helping them to understand what the medical procedures they have to undergo entail.

HealthVoyager was created by Klick Health, in collaboration with Boston Children’s Hospital. When physicians usually explain procedures to patients, the scientific language used often leaves patients confused and unsure about what questions to ask. Understanding these concepts is even harder for children. HealthVoyager seeks to solve this issue by making medical data more comprehendible.

The tool uses data from each patient’s electronic medical record that the hospital collects. An easy to use interface allows medical professionals to tag findings onto a digital image of the patient’s body. From this, a personalised report is created. The reports have a scannable code that is unique to each patient. To access their report, patients use a mobile app to scan their report. They can then create a customizable avatar to guide them through the visual findings. Included within these medical findings are visual explanations of what is happening inside the patient’s body, the medical procedure they will undergo, and the expected outcomes of the procedure.

VR enables HealthVoyager to engage children in their health journey and better understand medical procedures in a way that was previously unavailable. In what other ways can VR create new standards in patient journeys?