The VA Office of Healthcare Innovation and Learning (OHIL) has partnered with Penumbra to create virtual reality (VR) solutions to improve rehabilitation care for veterans. The collaboration aims to increase access to care in community-based outpatient clinics and at home. The VR solutions focus on orthopedics, neurorehabilitation, chronic condition management, and chronic pain management. The use of VR solutions for healthcare is becoming increasingly common, and the collaboration is part of efforts to promote healthcare delivery through innovation.
With a goal of improving access to healthcare for veterans, the VA Office of Healthcare Innovation and Learning (OHIL) has partnered with Penumbra to develop and test virtual reality (VR) solutions. The collaboration focuses on improving rehabilitation care and increasing access to care for veterans at community-based outpatient clinics and at home. The article discusses the collaboration and the VR solutions developed to address the needs of veterans.
The partnership between OHIL and Penumbra:
The VA Office of Healthcare Innovation and Learning (OHIL) partnered with Penumbra, a company that specializes in the development of innovative therapies. The collaboration aims to improve access to healthcare for veterans and enhance the quality of rehabilitation care. It also aims to promote healthcare delivery through innovation by using emerging healthcare technologies and products.
OHIL is a part of the VHA Innovation Ecosystem, the Simulation Learning, Evaluation, Assessment, and Research Network, and the Center for Care and Payment Innovation. These organizations work together to promote healthcare delivery through innovation. Penumbra is based in Alameda, California, and is known for developing innovative therapies.
The collaboration between OHIL and Penumbra aims to produce thoughtfully designed, developed and implemented solutions based on a deep understanding of veterans’ healthcare needs. OHIL Immersive Technology Lead Anne Lord Bailey said, “We believe immersive technology is defining a new reality in Veteran health care, and we’re excited to see how this expansion in rehabilitation care furthers that vision.”
The focus of the VR solutions:
The VR solutions developed by OHIL and Penumbra will focus mainly on orthopedics, neurorehabilitation, chronic condition management, and chronic pain management. OHIL also noted intentions to consider the further adoption of technologies for remote therapeutic rehabilitation, remote therapeutic monitoring, and remote patient management.
The use of VR solutions for healthcare:
The use of VR solutions for healthcare is becoming increasingly common due to the growth of digital technology. The VR solutions aim to improve access to care, enhance the quality of care, and reduce costs associated with care delivery.
In March, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) announced its plans to engage in a randomized controlled trial with Rocket VR Health to determine the efficacy of a VR digital therapeutic, and its ability to improve symptom burden, distress, and self-efficacy. The trial would include blood cancer patients admitted to the hospital for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.
Following a grant from the National Science Foundation in May 2022, the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) began creating a virtual reality care center. Known as the Center for Medical Innovation in Extended Reality (MIXR), the care center aimed to create and test new technologies and their relationship with healthcare.
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