Medical & Psychological Sites in Second Life: Mind, Body & Spirit Elisabeth Jacobsen Library Director, Trinitas Hospital Elizabeth, New Jersey ILC Monterey, California Oct 30, 2007
Clinical Education & Training in SL…
Virtual Training Hospitals * Ann Myers Medical Ctr College of Radiology & Allied Health
Why? Immersive environment Interactive: voice/chat Networking: global Safe patient simulations Recreates RL w/o limits Scripted Unscripted
Who? * Attendings * Residents * Interns * Students * Nurses * Allied Health
What do they do? Case presentations Class discussions Patient scenarios Continuing Education
Exploring Virtual Applications Benefits: – international collaboration – potential real life patient - doctor interaction – unrestricted by real life limitations – encourages thinking “out of the box” Drawbacks : Unreliable internet connections Unpredictable problems in- world: * Griefing lag rolling startups SL bugs
A day in the life of a virtual doctor…
College of Allied Health & Sciences hands-on learning with interactive exhibits online classes – CE – Certification variety of classes offered – phlebotomy class, lectures & labs – EKG readings & labs – chemistry labs – biology labs
Traditional and non-traditional tools for learning
The Imperial College of London’s Virtual Hospital
Marketing Strategy: from RL to SL to RL * Promotional * Limited CH education * Limited development * Links to RL * Showcase
Target Training & Education
The Virtual Neurological Education Ctr VNEC Educational tools Interactive simulations Consumer Health Professional Referring links Free
VNEC Interactive Motor Simulations
Information in a box…
Emergency Preparedness Training in SL: Play2Train Interactive role playing designed to support: – Incident Command System – Tabletop exercises – Emergency Services – Simple Triage training – Risk Communication
Dioramas: full scale replicas for scenario training Pandemics: Influenza Natural Disasters Bioterrorism – practice preparedness & response – Quarantine training mobile care facilities triage treatment Audience: –Clinical – Police, Fire, EMS – Administration – Local & State officials – business leaders – community
Recognizing the importance of research… Play2Train’s Interactive Medical Library
Custom design Learning: Hyperstring Designers for hire State of the art virtual classrooms Closed learning environment Limited only by imagination and $$$
Health Info Island: A growing mission and vision Consumer Health information Education Clinical research Reference links CME Directory of research/education groups in SL Experiment & develop new ways of interaction & communication
The Virtual Medical Library Designed by Librarians – Consumer Health – Professionals – Partnerships: NLM & NIH – Not staffed Chatbot QuestionPoint
Leading to Water: links to information …
Psychological Support in SL
What is Cybertherapy? Defined as the use of computer technology to provide mental health services Different than traditional therapy –Utilizes new forms of communication »Internet: , webcam »Phone Avatar therapy –Use of avatar to explore issues »Gender identification, Phobias, Disability, »Addictions, Social isolation and more…
Virtual Mental Health Services ** Advantages: –Anonymous if desired –Provides for those who are ill, do not have a car or can’t drive – simulates traditional face-to-face therapy through avatars ** Disadvantages: - internet connection woes - time zones - lack of physical cues - lack of inflection if not using voice communication
SL Mental Health Support: Discussion Groups, Individual Therapy
Professional Help for a fee or self-help for free Fee based Counseling The Centering Place Library: “notecard” books
At MD Kiosk: videos available for free or purchase. Learning about anxiety
Prepared with the help of Brielle Coronet