Overall Vision for the Product
Our product envisions a unified, modular virtual reality (VR) platform that integrates seamlessly with hospital systems to support patients throughout their treatment journey. The core idea is to create an immersive, patient-centered VR world that serves as a "psychological sandbox," where patients can engage in therapeutic exercises, evaluations, and learning experiences tailored to their specific needs.
Key elements of the vision include:
- Integration with Hospital Systems: Establish a singular connection to hospital platforms, allowing clinicians to launch VR experiences directly from existing systems.
Example: A clinician using the hospital's EHR system can prescribe a VR therapy module just as they would prescribe medication. The VR session automatically syncs with the patient's treatment plan and schedules reminders, ensuring seamless integration with existing workflows. Our platform functions as an API within the hospital's infrastructure, enabling secure data exchange and real-time updates on patient progress.
- Patient-Centered, Customizable VR World: Develop an adaptive VR environment that evolves with patients throughout their treatment, allowing them to tailor their therapeutic space to personal preferences.
Example: A patient begins by selecting their preferred environment—such as a tranquil beach, a serene forest, or a cozy mountain cabin. They can adjust settings like time of day, weather conditions, or background sounds. Someone who finds rain soothing might choose a drizzly setting with the sound of raindrops, while another might prefer a sunny day with birds chirping. As they progress through therapy, the environment evolves based on their choices and therapeutic milestones.
- Modular and Reusable Environments with Biopsychosocial Approach: Create environments and modules that address biological, psychological, and social aspects of health, adaptable across various medical conditions.
Examples:
- Biological: A module teaches patients deep-breathing techniques and gentle movement exercises, like VR Tai Chi sessions where movements are mirrored by the avatar.
- Psychological: CBT exercises where patients interact with floating thought bubbles, selecting and reshaping negative thoughts into positive affirmations.
- Social: Role-playing scenarios for practicing communication with family members or healthcare providers.
- The same VR forest environment used for stress reduction in oncology can be adapted for pain management by incorporating different therapeutic elements.
- Interactive Progress Tracking and Storytelling: Combine engaging narratives with visual progress tracking and data integration.
Example: Patients embark on a hero's journey, collecting virtual tokens or artifacts that symbolize milestones—like a blooming flower for personal growth or a glowing stone for resilience. These populate a personal "sanctuary" within the VR world, while the platform records completion data, time spent, and mood changes for clinician review.
- Guided Experience Through Avatar Interaction: Utilize avatars as essential guides complementing clinician roles.
Example: An empathetic avatar therapist adjusts its responses based on patient input, offering encouragement or gentle prompts. For pediatric patients, the avatar could be a friendly animated character making the experience more engaging.