Perspectives is the newsletter of the Stanford course,
Perspectives in Assistive Technology.

Transform Healthcare

This issue announces the remaining class sessions.

Course News

Course Statistics - Forty-three students have enrolled in the course, four students are auditing, ten vendors plan to participate in the Virtual Assistive Technology Faire, and twenty-six students have chosen to work on nineteen projects, ten suggested by six community members.

Next class session - Tuesday, March 9th at 4:30pm PST via Zoom

Abstract: This presentation provides an overview of how the coming wave of Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR), Machine Learning and Biosensing Technology are converging and elaborates how this convergence will impact clinical care, disability solutions, and personal health and wellness.

Although entertainment, social connection, and gaming is driving the initial adoption of VR and AR technology, the deepest and most significant impact of the next generation of VR/AR technology will be to enhance clinical care and to improve personal health and wellness. VR and AR technology will also help facilitate the shift of medicine from clinic-based care to telemedicine based care, and to facilitate personalized medicine.

We know from decades of clinical research that VR/AR technology can provide breakthrough solutions that address the most difficult problems in healthcare - ranging from mood disorders such as Anxiety and Depression to PTSD, Addictions, Autism, Cognitive Aging, Stroke Recovery, and Physical Rehabilitation, to name just a few.

VR and AR Systems can be used to improve medical training such as surgical skill training and procedure planning by applying simulation-based learning principals. Personal health and wellness will be improved by using VR to promote healthy lifestyles and to reduce stress and anxiety.

VR/AR technology, when combined with Machine Learning and Biosensing technology can be used to improve clinical measurements and assessments by making them more objective and functional. As the cost of healthcare rises, this confluence of emerging technology well be used as the foundation for next-generation telemedicine platforms to reduce costs of care delivery, improve clinical efficiency, and reach previously underserved populations.

Biosketch: Walter Greenleaf is a neuroscientist and a medical technology developer working at Stanford University. With over three decades of research and development experience, Walter is considered a leading authority in the field of digital medicine and medical virtual reality technology.

Zoom Attendance

This class session will not be open to community attendance - This decision has been made due to the loss of audio quality during the first class session - mostly likely due to the large number of attendees and a poor WiFi connection. For these reasons, I must restrict Zoom attendance to enrolled students. Individuals affiliated with Stanford can request to be invited to the class session. However, I will provide the link to this recorded video session to anyone who requests it.

Upcoming class sessions:

• Thursday, March 11th - Wheelchair Fabrication in Developing Countries
• Tuesday, March 16th - End-of-Term Student Project Presentations
• Thursday, March 18th - End-of-Term Student Project Presentations

Other

Email questions, comments, or suggestions - Please email me if you have general questions, comments, corncerns, or suggestions regarding the course. Thank you again for your interest.

Dave