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New Lenovo research has outlined the positive impact virtual reality can have on our health, highlighting how VR is starting to be used in some hospitals in place of general anesthetics to alleviate pain for young patients.
The new Lenovo film, premiered at the Denver Film Festival, showcases the groundbreaking use of its technology in collaboration with Starlight Children’s Foundation, which is using the Lenovo Mirage Solo VR headset in its Starlight Virtual Reality program.
The VR technology enables pediatricians at Children’s Hospital Colorado and hundreds of Starlight partner hospitals and healthcare facilities in the US to use the headsets as a procedural tool for critically ill young patients, primarily to reduce anxiety during mild to moderately painful procedures.
By using VR as a calming distraction, several patients have been able to undergo these procedures whilst awake, cutting down lengthy recovery times, and reducing the need for medication.
Joe Albietz, MD, medical director at Child Life, Children’s Hospital Colorado, commented: “Due to the distressing nature of treatments such as a lumbar puncture, where a needle is used to withdraw spinal fluid and sometimes administer medication, our patients often receive the procedure under general anesthetic. Virtual Reality can be used in place of general anesthesia to help tolerate pain, and in fact, it is having a profound impact on the quality of life of our hospitalised children. We are seeing children who used to require general anesthesia, now able to be fully awake with minimal medications.”
To unearth new insights into the social changes and benefits of intelligent technology and smart devices, Lenovo surveyed more than 15,000 individuals, across the US, Mexico, Brazil, China, India, Japan, UK, Germany, France and Italy. The research found that people around the world believe new technologies have the power to transform the health care space, with 47 per cent of global respondents saying technology will be “critical” in transforming health care in the future.
Furthermore, the majority (84 per cent) of respondents say they believe technology can empower people, communities and society to help address and solve big global problems, including in the health care field, while a quarter (25 per cent) report they feel technology companies have a responsibility to help address and solve major challenges facing society and the world.
Dilip Bhatia, vice president of user and customer experience, Lenovo, commented: “As technology transforms the world into a more intelligent and inter-connected place, Starlight Virtual Reality is one of many examples of Lenovo’s commitment to creating smarter technology that transforms society. We believe this responsibility falls to global technology providers to collectively develop solutions to solve larger societal issues, such as in the health care sector. In addition, our new global survey shows that people around the world share our belief that technology can benefit humankind in crucial areas such as health and wellness.”
Watch Lenovo’s New Realities film below:
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