- Scientists at Houston Methodist Hospital took the first step in building a medical metaverse.
- App users can explore surgical simulations, virtual conferences, and even the human heart.
- The platform also offers a virtual auditorium where medical professionals from around the world can present with unlimited live viewing capabilities.
Technology has completely transformed areas such as health. At present, consultations can be carried out in different ways and not only in the classic face-to-face format. In fact, from the beginning of the pandemic the The medical metaverse has achieved an important expansion due to all the possibilities it offers to both doctors and patients.
The future of Medicine has already begun
Before moving forward, it is necessary to start with the basic definition of this technology. The first time it was described in a general way was in the Neal Stephenson’s novel “Snow Crash” published in 1992. This work mentions the creation of parallel or complementary virtual spaces to our reality. The concept had already been mentioned before but this is where it is described in a more faithful way to how it finally materialized in the real world.
With respect to the real world, it can be described as environments where humans interact socially and economically as avatars. They do it through a software in a cyberspace, which acts as a metaphor for the real world but without its limitations.
In this way, the Medical metaverse implies being able to provide remote care with the support of tools such as Virtual Reality glasses. Although it is not the only utility because they can also be used in the training of doctors.
New way of learning for medical students
In this case, the Houston Methodist Hospital presented MITIEverse. It is a mobile application that allows medical students to access remote practices and assistance from experienced doctors. It was created in association with FundamentalVR and it stands out because it transports the user to customizable exhibition rooms, surgical simulations and faculty lectures.
The Houston Methodist Institute of Technology, Innovation and Education (MITIE) is a hands-on clinical training center for healthcare professionals seeking to maintain excellent procedural skills and acquire new competencies.
“This application takes education and training to a more practical level, in addition to allowing a new virtual audience to learn about MITIE. It could be a first step toward building a medical metaverse,” said Stuart Corr, Ph.D, inventor of the MITIEverse and director of innovation systems engineering at Houston Methodist Hospital.
Inside the showroom Houston Methodist Hospital, users can watch professors perform real surgeries and then interact with 3D human models. Therefore, MITIEverse is considered as a paradigm shift platform that will offer new experiences on what education and training is like in the health community.
“Basically, it democratizes access to healthcare educators and innovators by breaking down physical barriers. You don’t have to travel thousands of miles to attend a conference when you can connect to MITIEverse.”
The platform also offers a virtual auditorium where medical professionals from around the world can present with unlimited live viewing capabilities. Virtual study spaces enable global multi-user experiences with interactive models, whiteboards, and other tools.
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