Benefits Of Virtual Reality In Healthcare

• By Likhitha K
• 27-12-2022
• AR VR

Virtual reality is set to revolutionize the healthcare industry in the coming years as numerous industries benefit from this technology's unique features along with other healthcare tech trends.

According to market research firm Precedence Research's statistics, the annual growth of the healthcare-related virtual reality industry is expected to reach an impressive $19.6 billion by 2030.

With recent advancements in VR, there have been some exciting developments in the application of VR in healthcare and healthcare-related fields. In this blog, we'll explore the applications of virtual reality in healthcare and the benefits it can offer.

What is VR?

Virtual reality is a technology that allows you to experience and interact with an artificial, computer-generated environment that can seem real. Virtual reality applications include entertainment (e.g., video games), education (e.g., medical or military training), etc.

A person using virtual reality equipment can typically look around the artificial world, move around, and interact with virtual features or items. The precise definition of virtual reality depends on technology, application, and perception.

Virtual reality is a computer-generated environment that lets users experience a different place or situation. It immerses them in an experience by stimulating their senses.

Why use VR in healthcare?

The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) has increased its focus on telehealth.

Telehealth is the use of digital information and communication technologies to provide healthcare services and support remotely. This can include everything from consultations and diagnoses to treatments and aftercare.

The ability to provide virtual care from a distance is a valuable tool that can serve patients who live in rural or highly populated areas or who require frequent follow-up visits.

By leveraging telemedicine, especially virtual care, specialists and subspecialists can expand their reach and bring their expertise to more patients across their region – or even worldwide. Health professionals can combine the power of AI in healthcare to further enhance the capabilities of VR.

Now, let's understand how the healthcare industry leverages VR for telehealth.

Applications of VR in healthcare

Medical Education

Medical education is one of the most important applications of VR. Students can use VR to learn about different medical procedures and practice those procedures with virtual patients before they start doing them in real life.

For example, students can use VR to learn how to perform a laparoscopic surgery or an endoscopy procedure on virtual patients instead of practicing it on real patients or animals. This will help them get better results while saving time and money and avoiding risks to human lives.

Diagnostics

Doctors and medical professionals use VR as a powerful diagnostic tool to diagnose precisely. This technique is used in conjunction with others, such as MRI/CT scans, and because no intrusive procedures are required, the patient has a pain-free experience.

The World Health Organization reports that between 35% and 85% of mental health disorders go undiagnosed. But recent advancements in virtual reality (VR) technology have begun to help patients with disorders like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and Alzheimer's disease.

VR can provide a realistic simulation of a patient's symptoms, allowing doctors to diagnose more accurately.

Pain management

Virtual reality technology reduces pain and anxiety using immersive environments and sensory stimuli. Using VR can help patients control their pain because it distracts them from their discomfort while providing them with a distraction-free environment.

Some VR apps provide a simulated environment that can be used for pain management, either on its own or in conjunction with clinical care. This provides a drug-free alternative to traditional pain management methods, which can be more effective and less expensive.

You can also use VR to help people with chronic pain learn new coping mechanisms and strategies.

Physical fitness and therapies

The way activities are performed now is drastically changing in the fitness sector. Many new startups are popping up in the fitness industry, and they are incorporating VR with traditional aerobic programs to change the way people view exercise.

VR is known to play a significant role in physical rehabilitation. Patients who follow a VR indused exercise plan have been shown to recover at a much higher rate than those prescribed medication or invasive procedures.

A recent review analyzing the effectiveness of VR exercise was published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health in 2020. The review concluded that VR workouts effectively improve physical fitness, muscle strength, and balance.

Benefits of using VR in healthcare

A better understanding of symptoms and treatments for patients

When people experience something in VR that mimics what they would experience in real life, they tend to understand better how the treatment works and why it is important.

For example, if you want your patient to understand how an antibiotic works, you can use VR to let them see how bacteria grow under different conditions and how antibiotics kill those bacteria when they are exposed to them in a controlled environment where nothing else is going on inside the body simultaneously.

Training and simulation

VR can be used to train doctors, surgeons, and nurses. It can help them gain experience in treating complex cases before facing them in real life. This helps reduce healthcare costs by minimizing the risk of complications during an operation or procedure. According to Researchgate's research, 74% of medical students showed improved learning using VR in medical education.

Simulation allows healthcare professionals to practice procedures repeatedly until they become second nature. This means that when they face a real-life situation, they will be prepared for it and able to respond quickly with minimal effort. This improves patient safety and reduces the chances for doctors to deal with difficult or unfavorable situations.

Distant care

One of the main benefits of VR is that it can help healthcare professionals treat people far away from them physically or with mobility problems that make it difficult for them to travel.

For example, doctors could use VR to consult with patients who live abroad or have limited mobility due to illness or old age. The patient would use a computer or mobile device to control the software and interact with their doctor using headset-based controllers.

Reduces patient's pain

Virtual reality can improve the patient experience and reduce pain during specific procedures. For example, it has been shown that VR helps reduce anxiety during dental treatments.

It can also be used to distract patients during painful procedures such as injections or stitches by allowing them to focus on something else while they are being treated. This makes it easier for them to cope with what they are experiencing, so they don't need as much medication or sedation afterward.

Wrapping Up

The technology of virtual reality is at a nascent stage. Despite the modest popularity of these applications, there are already many benefits. Healthcare technology solutions are accessible, affordable, and continuously improving every year.

From treating PTSD and phobias to reducing pain, encouraging exercise, and healing wounds faster, the uses for VR are boundless. Whether it is through social isolation or physical treatment, it seems as though VR technology is set to have a significant impact on healthcare soon.