Using VR to help kids be less afraid of vaccines
Many children (and adults) are scared of needles. During childhood, vaccines and immunizations are administered to keep children from contracting diseases that can be fatal. A VR experience has been created specifically to divert children's attention away from the needle and fear associated with it. The child receiving a vaccine wears a VR headset and the nurse administering it follows along on a second screen. The cold sensation of the disinfecting wipe is associated with a piece of ice in the VR and the needle is associated with a "fire fruit." These visuals alter the children's perception of the stimulus and make them more calm. This allows medical professionals to administer shots more quickly and effectively and make the experience better for the children.
Critique: I wonder how this could be used when children need to receive multiple shots. If they watch the same video over and over they will get bored and possibly end up loosing focus which could lead to them feeling the needle. In order for this method to be effective, different VR worlds need to be created so more than one shot can be administered.
Link to article: http://www.welovead.com/en/works/details/0dfwgqrvf
Rebekah Kitching
Critique: I wonder how this could be used when children need to receive multiple shots. If they watch the same video over and over they will get bored and possibly end up loosing focus which could lead to them feeling the needle. In order for this method to be effective, different VR worlds need to be created so more than one shot can be administered.
Link to article: http://www.welovead.com/en/works/details/0dfwgqrvf
Rebekah Kitching
I agree, i do not think this is the best way to keep children calm from needles because of the multiple needles. However, I would like to know how successful the VR was with children who went back to get another shot? Were those kids more likely to get the shot with no problem? If that is the case hen would children be more likely to accept more than one vaccination. I think the problem would be how long would the effects of VR would last over a long period of time. For example, would a child who used VR be ready to receive a shot without the VR. I think testing out how long does the effects of VR and vaccinations could answer your question about the multiple shots. Maybe having a control group, a group with kids who have used VR right before a shot, and a group of kids who used VR a week after the shot. This could carefully show how well VR benefits children who fear needles.
ReplyDeleteDaysha Holmes
This has interesting ties to Plato's Allegory of the cave. We all have seen videos on the internet of people of people falling over or being terrified by Virtual simulations. Even in watching movies, or playing videogames, people can become deeply invested in media which ultimately distracts from real life things. By placing video stimulation over one's entire field of view; it makes sense that one's perception and focus would be on the stimulus in front of them, rather than the outside world.
ReplyDeleteI think that this works well as a solution for extremely phobic patients, but ultimately the doctor is replacing one's experience with a fantasy to overcome something that most people inherently do not enjoy.
I wonder who is and is not a candidate for this practice.
As a kid, if I knew I could use VR (much less to omit the fear associated with needles) I would instantly want to participate. (regardless of its potential cognitive effect).
I think this may be harmful to one's development and ability to process difficult situations , but I see it's use for particularly difficult children.
I agree that multiple shots may expose flaws with this system, and I don't know that I would want to replace my child's visceral experience with fantasy.
Overall, I feel as though getting a shot the old fashioned way could have beneficial personal, or cognitive effects that are essential to handling similar (difficult) situations.
I, Brandon Jones posted the above comment by Unknown; I do not know why it did not take my name, I am signed in.
ReplyDeleteI myself am terrified of needles. I dont even have any tattoos that's how scared I am. Whenever I am getting a shot or blood drawn I always try to look away because as soon as the nurse or tech walks into the room with the supplies, I immediatley get anxiety. This still doesnt work because my stomach still feels funny. I'm not sure if the virtual reality would really be that helpful because clearly you know whats going on and we as humans always psyc ourselves out. The virtual reality for sure serves as an distraction and I can see how it could be used to help calm someone. However, needles arent even really that bad, it really just feels like a pinch, but i hate them so much because of all of the emotions I interally go through before I even get the shot.
ReplyDeleteI think that virtual reality could be a useful resource in aiding in many medical procedures. I am interested to know how captivating this virtual reality experience is and if it is intense enough to remove the child's attention from the adverse stimuli. While the use of Ice and a "fire fruit" match the sensations being felt by the child, a stronger, emotion inducing VR may be more effective in capturing the person's attention. A survey on the child's interests may be useful as all VR experiences may not be interesting and/-or pleasant to every viewer.
ReplyDeleteI do agree that there is the potential for virtual reality to be a distraction method for children receiving vaccines. The article was interesting to read, and it seems there is still a lot of research to be done on the topic. There was another study that I read about where a doctor tried this method at a pediatric office and saw a significant decrease in fear using a pre and post survey for before and after the vaccination. https://www.wearable-technologies.com/2018/06/virtual-reality-help-kids-overcome-fear-of-immunization/
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