Augmented and Virtual Reality in Healthcare Industry

Introduction: What is AR/VR?

In simple terms, Virtual Reality (VR) is a computer-generated simulation or a replacement of one’s environment. For example, when special equipments like VR headsets are used, it blocks out the world’s view and substitutes a digital world that is designed to fool our senses. VR headsets use stereoscopic display to give depth to the image being looked at and make it 3-dimensional, similar to how human eyes function. However, the stereoscopic display alone cannot make it an immersive experience. These devices have the ability to track a user’s motion, particularly their head and eye movements, allowing the image displayed in the headset to change with user’s perspective. Thus, it can also be explained as a form of mental teleportation. Augmented Reality (AR) is different from VR in the sense that its main purpose is not to cut off from the real world and export the user to a virtual world, but rather a digital addition to the user’s world. The person’s real environment is supplemented with computer-generated images to enhance user experience. In the past AR and VR technologies were mainly used in gaming or entertainment industry, but in recent years their worth in healthcare and medicine has been realized.

Existing problems: Need for a change

The healthcare industry is a global industry of utmost importance where the stakes are the highest. Global access to healthcare is one of the major topics of debate worldwide. In 2015, the Ebola epidemic proved to be fatal for the country of Sierra Leone in west Africa. Sierra Leone only had 8 surgeons for their population of six million people. The National Health Service (NHS) for England released figures showing the number of deaths due to missed diagnosis and long delays by ambulances had more than doubled from 31 in 2012 to 72 in 2016. So, apart from logistical issues and issues with limited access, there are other permanent concerns with shortage of personnel in many local institutions. Even financial issues like increasing cost of staff, supplies and equipment is a huge concern for medical industry. Lack of innovation in healthcare and increasing demand has given rise to the trend of integrating AR/VR in healthcare. Implementation of AR/VR technology can ease all these challenges and provide even more benefits. AR/VR technology can be used to provide remote consultation, surgery assistance, advanced diagnostics, medical education, psychological treatment and much more.

The Market: AR/VR in use

In the past, there have been several advancements in remote surgery with the latest being robotics surgery. This allows the surgeon to perform a surgery without being at the patient’s bedside. He could use a computer to maneuver the robot and perform the surgery at high precision. The drawback of this technology is the extremely high cost of robot which makes it infeasible. AR technology solves this problem by providing a cost-effective, scalable and accessible solution to everyone. All that is required is a phone/tablet/computer, an internet connection, a colleague on the ground and an augmented reality collaboration software. Using this augmented reality collaboration software, an expert surgeon can virtually transport himself into any clinical condition by using his communication device. He can visually and practically interact in an operation buy guiding and mentoring a local doctor through the procedure step by step. “Proximie” is a cloud-based, AR platform that aims to provide remote consultation to doctors around the world with limited resources. In June 2018, this platform was used for the first time during robotic prostate cancer surgery at Guy’s Hospital in London. Thereon, surgeons in Gaza, Iraq, Syria as well as other countries in Middle East and West Africa used Proximie to coordinate with other colleagues around the world for surgery.

AR/VR: The gift that keeps on giving

Another area where AR/VR can be beneficial is medical education. VR surgery run-throughs could be used to train and educate patients, medical interns and professionals. This technology was used by Zhongshan hospital to perform China’s first VR surgery in July 2016. Numerous sensors and cameras were used to broadcast the operation. Medical interns used VR headsets to observe and learn from real life point-of-view. This also benefits the healthcare industry by cutting costs on medical training and saving time. A company named AccuVein is using Augmented Reality to assist medical staff with placement of intravenous catheter. Placement of intravenous catheter is often a source of anxiety for early-career medical staff which can be a harrowing experience for their patients. AccuVein uses AR to scan a patient’s skin and locate veins for easier placement of needle. Their technology is proposed to increase the probability of successful needle stick in first attempt by 3.5 times. The immersive feature of VR opens the possibility of using it in providing psychological relief and treatment. VR can assist in providing exposure therapy by exposing patients to the situation that they are fearful of. This will help patients manage their automatic physiological response and become desensitized to that response.

Conclusion

Shortcomings of the healthcare industry have paved the way for innovation. AR/VR technology is proving to be crucial in eliminating major issues such as logistics, access to healthcare, lack of personnel, appropriate medical training, cost management and efficient use of resources. Several companies have integrated this technology to provide solutions which previously were not possible. Addition of AR/VR in healthcare not only help the customers/patients by enhancing their experience but also the healthcare companies by using their resources more efficiently and treating more patients. AR/VR in no way is a replacement to medical professionals but a supplement to increase their productivity and reliability.