Forbes: Virtual Reality Helps Medics Beat Coronavirus
Forbes recently interviewed Russell Metcalfe-Smith, director of the Women’s Guild Simulation Center for Advanced Clinical Skills at Cedars-Sinai, about the role of virtual reality (VR) during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The simulation center that Metcalfe-Smith oversees provides an immersive environment equipped with the latest in patient simulators and medical devices. The center replicates the reality of professionals working together, performing different roles and using the latest technology. It helps Cedars-Sinai provide the best possible care to patients and provides staff with the latest in educational technology.
During the pandemic, Metcalfe-Smith has expanded the simulation center's capacity to train clinicians by working with Virti, an educational technology company, according to Forbes. Virti has been using a combination of VR, augmented reality and artificial intelligence to train healthcare and social care professionals around the world during the COVID-19 crisis.
Cedars-Sinai has been using technology from Virti for a wide range of functions from mindfulness and resilience courses to COVID-19 surge response training, Metcalfe-Smith explained.
“We've found it very valuable to observe a doctor's thinking process and it's all been done with social distancing,” said Metcalfe-Smith. “Because we can't get large groups together right now, we've had to rely on technology to give the same experience. The simulations provide a feeling of presence and it feels like you are in a room with a patient.”
In addition to using VR for training in the simulation center, Cedars-Sinai is an international leader in medical VR research, with investigators exploring the potential of the technology to improve patient care by reducing pain for hospitalized patients and women during childbirth.
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