Tech
Care provider to develop sector-leading VR training
Newcross Healthcare is sharing its in-house expertise for the benefit of the wider healthcare sector
A care provider is building on its experience of using virtual reality (VR) for in-house training to create the first programme of its kind for healthcare, which is set to be rolled out across the sector.
Newcross Healthcare first began to adopt VR around three years ago, but over the past year has upskilled its in-house learning and development team to create its own bespoke content to deliver new and engaging staff training.
The team has created a number of programmes and ‘virtual shifts’ to enable staff to learn more about the Newcross business and its continuing staff development to deliver the best possible client care.
Now, Newcross plans to take its expertise in VR to a new level, by expanding into learning and training through the creation of an ‘extended reality’ programme.
The pioneering new training – which will be a first for the healthcare sector – will enable the recreation of emergency situations, including life-saving first aid, to help staff develop their skills, confidence and ability to remain calm for when confronted with such an event in real life.
The system – which Newcross hope to deliver within the next six to nine months – will be used in-house initially, but can also be used by clients and other care groups to use VR training to help raise standards and innovation throughout the health and social care sector.
“Our experiences of creating these environments has now enabled us to to define what how we want to use this in a learning environment,” says Mark Story, head of learning and development at Newcross.
“We want to use technology – it might be VR, immersive, 360 videos, augmented reality – to allow people to experience stress environments so they can get over the initial shock factor and be able to think clearly for when it happens in real life.
“Our focus initially will be on those topics for learning that people might feel shocked by when they first when they first come in or, by their nature, they’re stressful things.
“If you’re training someone in basic life support or in seizures, for example, you can only really go so far. But by being able to recreate that environment, for if and when it happens to them, they will be more prepared.
“It also has a role to play in keeping people’s skills fresh and up to date. With something like CPR, you hope that you never have to use it, but this could provide the opportunity to keep the skills at a simmer, as opposed to letting them go cold.
“That will be for internal staff for healthcare staff, nurses and carers, and shortly after that it will be made available for external healthcare professionals. Our ambition is to offer this learning to anybody that wants to access it.
Having invested in the development of its own in-house capability, Newcross is now able to deliver something new for the sector, building on the training currently available and creating a cost-effective new option for the marketplace.
“There is other training out there, but what we found is that it’s either immersive, so gives a bit of an immersion into the situation, or it’s something that has a simulation and assessment of a physical activity, or it’s something that is kind of broadly virtual reality.
“There doesn’t seem to be anything in there that brings these three pieces together, which immerses you, assesses you and and keeps you in that virtual reality environment.
“So we think we can we think we can bring those things together in a new way for for healthcare.
“What we’re creating isn’t entirely new, and certainly exists in high-end learning activities, like training pilots, for example, or training surgeons. We know these sorts of learning interventions do work but we’re looking to create them for the mass market, to get thousands of people engaged as opposed to a small number.
“We want it to be democratised, to be cheap enough for us to develop and offer out to anybody who needs it. That’s what we’re working towards.”
Tech
GripAble praised by MP
Stephen Hammond MP hails its innovation and “extraordinary” success to date and potential
The progress of GripAble has been hailed as “extraordinary” by its local MP, who praised its innovation and ongoing progress in transforming neurorehab and wider healthcare.
GripAble, the UK technology company digitising upper limb rehabilitation from hospital to home, welcomed Stephen Hammond, MP for Wimbledon, to its international sales and distribution centre.
Mr Hammond visited GripAble’s office in Wimbledon to learn how private equity investment has helped it to scale its industry-leading data platform and therapy services and expand GripAble into Europe and the US, as well as how an international company has successfully stemmed from the local business community.
During his visit, the MP met the GripAble team and listened to a presentation by GripAble co-founder and CEO Dr Paul Rinne, who shared the background to GripAble and its growth story to date, as well as plans and ambitions for the future.
Prior to becoming an MP, Stephen Hammond worked for a leading fund management company and multiple investment banks, so was particularly interested in the funding GripAble has received to date, including the recent close of its $11m funding round.
With more than 8,000 individuals having already used the platform, GripAble has established itself as a leading technology in the remote-rehab space in the UK, recording 100,000 activity sessions and 27 million movement repetitions across its users.
Stephen Hammond MP said: “GripAble proves that innovative companies of the future that are building products that will transform healthcare can be based anywhere, but I’m particularly proud that GripAble has started out in Wimbledon.
“It’s been wonderful to see the development of the company over the last two years since first meeting Paul, and I’m sure the developments over the next three years will be equally extraordinary, particularly with the backing of private equity investment.”
Dr Rinne said: “Today’s visit was a fantastic opportunity for us to showcase GripAble’s story and vision to a Member of Parliament and explain how private equity investment can help UK-based entrepreneurs take ideas from seed stage through to global scaling, and compete on the international stage.
“The investment we have received will accelerate GripAble’s journey to delivering end-to-end patient rehabilitation and connecting millions to their own personal home-based clinic.
“With the backing of investors such as IP Group and Parkwalk, we will benefit from a wealth of insight and experience that will support us in growing our platform in the US and expanding our clinical and commercial evidence base.
“It is great to be able to work with such supportive investors that make our lives so much easier.”
Tech
Cognetivity tech could revolutionise concussion detection
Having established itself in early-stage dementia, CognICA is now being used in a new concussion in sport study
A new study into concussion in sport will use the pioneering cognitive testing platform developed by Cognetivity to identify changes in brain health through repeated head impacts.
The research will see Cognetivity partner with Durham University and sports tech firm My Sports Wellbeing to look at concussions at all levels of sport, from high performance to community level.
Data will be collected through the CognICA platform, the groundbreaking AI technology developed by Cognetivity which has helped to revolutionise early-stage dementia testing and is now moving into new applications for its use, including concussion.
Professor Karen Hind from Durham University and her team will use the tool to detect concussion and investigate changes in relation to repeated sub concussions.
The goal of the study is to investigate the CognICA tool’s effectiveness in identifying changes in cognitive health due to concussion and repeated head impacts.
Up to 3.8million athletes sustain concussions annually, with statistics showing that between 56 and 89 per cent of concussions are missed or misdiagnosed, which often leads to the mismanagement of patients who are affected.
Through the use of the CognICA platform, which has proven its efficacy in dementia and its ability to detect small changes in cognition, Cognetivity believes it can have a key role to play in concussion and enable better outcomes for athletes of all levels.
“We are excited to work with Durham University and My Sports Wellbeing to understand more about the cognitive impact of concussions in sports and how CognICA can contribute to timely diagnosis and therefore better treatment and management of this serious global issue,” said Dr Sina Habibi, co-founder and CEO of Cognetivity.
“Improving assessment, treatments and care to elevate the overall lives of patients with brain injuries and cognitive impairments is a top priority at Cognetivity and we are hopeful that the study will yield important results to help us achieve that goal.”
Prof Hind is a prominent name in athlete health and wellbeing, and led the first independent study into the health of retired professional rugby players.
“We’re very excited to be working on this study. Cognetivity’s unique technology represents a promising way to assess cognitive health in athletes at risk of concussion, post concussion and in relation to sub-concussions,” she said.
“This study is part of our overall programme of research through which we seek to investigate and provide strategies to improve athlete health and welfare.”
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