Wieke Schrakamp

Researcher, Valsplat

More and more, Healthcare is looking at the games industry to improve both the education of healthcare professionals and to directly help patients. This might seem odd but the reason is simple. A large part of modern healthcare is about changing a patient’s behavior. And game designers are masters at designing behavior. They know exactly when to give information, feedback and incentives. But they also know when it’s time to hold back and just let the player figure it out himself. They keep players curious, eager to learn more, and determined to improve themselves. This is not about rewarding learners golden stars, it is about redesigning how we look at education and behaviour design.

In this talk, we’ll be looking at two projects done by Dutch industry leader IJsfontein. An interactive video experience to teach healthcare professionals how to recognize and treat patients with a delirium and a VR application to help people who are dealing with a depression through cognitive behavioral therapy

Café Sunday: A VR Tool for Cognitive Behaviour Therapy

When you are dealing with a depression, it is often hard to think positively. People who are depressed often think negatively like ‘It’s all my fault’ or ‘they must be angry’. When receiving cognitive therapy, you will learn to recognise those automatic negative thoughts, and replace them with alternative more positive thoughts. An important part of this type of therapy is putting this into practice in real life. Unfortunately, your therapist cannot be present then, and the gap between understanding Cognitive Behaviour Therapy and being able to put this into practise is huge. This is why we developed Cafe Sunday. A Virtual Reality (VR) world where you can practise being in everyday situations, in a safe environment, with your therapist present.

Delirium Experience

When experiencing delirium, people become confused, see things that are not there and behave irrationally. A good diagnosis and acting accordingly are crucial for becoming clear-headed again as soon as possible. Unfortunately, many medical professionals are ill-informed of this condition and the possible interventions. To meet the demand for professional education, IJsfontein developed The Delirium Experience. A playful and experimental way to recognize and treat a patient with a delirium.