How Virtual Reality is Transforming the Healthcare and Defense Industries

Virtual reality (VR) is an advanced technology system that fully immerses users into a “virtual world.” This experience is achieved through wearing headsets that alter visual, auditory, and tactical perceptions. Since this multisensory experience is so realistic, VR is different from other forms of extended reality technologies, such as augmented reality. VR is thought of as a relatively recent idea, but traces of its origin go back almost 100 years ago. The term “virtual reality” was first used by French visual artist Antonin Artaud in 1938, when he described the illusionary nature of objects in the theater as “La Réalité Virtuelle.” The first VR headset wouldn’t be created until 30 years later in 1968 by computer scientist Ivan Sutherland. Fast forward to today, VR has experienced massive software and hardware improvements, allowing the technology to become more mainstream. Although it’s generally thought of as a consumer product, VR has immense applications for industrial purposes, and two major industries have capitalized on this unique technology: healthcare and defense. 

The medical field has been using VR in a variety of ways. In their research article titled “Is Virtual Reality Ready for Prime Time in the Medical Space? A Randomized Control Trial of Pediatric Virtual Reality for Acute Procedural Pain Management,” Jeffrey Gold and Nicole Mahrer analyze the feasibility and efficacy of VR as a method of reducing pain, anxiety, and improving satisfaction associated with blood draw for children and young adults. They compared these results with standard of care (SOC) as a method for reducing these negative effects. The results of the study found that acute procedural pain was significantly reduced when the patients used VR compared to the patients using SOC. Additionally, patients who are more fearful of physiological sensations related to anxiety benefit more from the use of VR as an intervention compared to patients who are less fearful. 

VR is beneficial for surgical training, as well. A recent study conducted at UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine tested the effectiveness of VR in medical training and found that the Osso VR training improved surgical performance by 230% compared with traditional training methods. Participants were also 20% faster than the traditionally-trained group and completed 38% more steps correctly. Along with assisting with training, VR has also been used to help doctors plan their operations since they’re able to map out an upcoming surgery through the VR system. Consequently, this technology has brought other indirect benefits to the medical sector. For example, Stanford hospital has been able to draw in more patients than nearby local hospitals solely because of their use of VR. With this technology, Stanford Medicine doctors can use a software system that combines imaging from MRIs, CT scans, and angiograms to create a 3-D model to virtually guide patients through procedures before they happen using VR headsets. The immersive experience has the incredible ability to reassure patients, especially younger patients and those who do not understand English well. 

VR has also improved the defense industry in a multitude of ways, specifically through the training process. The U.S. Department of Defense published an article on their website written by Katie Lange titled “Virtual, Augmented Reality Are Moving Warfighting Forward” about how the military has addressed the complexities of the modern-day battlefield by investing in virtualized synthetic environments to train for combat. One place this training is carried out is at The Agency for Modeling and Simulation, a partnership between all military branches and University of Central Florida researchers and academics. “Rapid change is the norm right now. So, yes, VR and augmented reality technologies are of huge importance in the way we innovate moving on,” explained Dr. Alethea Duhon, technical director at the Air Force Agency for Modeling Simulation. Defense experts believe there is immense value in creating realistic simulated training in order to prepare for future threats, and virtual reality is one of the mediums they use to conduct this preparation. 

VR enables soldiers to re-enact combat scenarios in a virtual space. They can simulate a variety of environments, including inland, urban, and desert. Soldiers are in full uniforms, holding weapons, and are communicating with fellow soldiers. However, all of their actions are done virtually. Operators of the system can watch the soldiers’ movements, give them directions, and implement challenges throughout the course. The military will always utilize live-training, but VR technology has allowed for a more efficient and cost-effective form of training. VR developers have also created interactive maps for the military. Users can rotate these maps, implement border lines, add helicopters and airplanes, mark routes and zones in real-time, and bring up documents. 

Despite the many possible benefits, there are limitations to the use of VR in the healthcare and defense industries. In regard to pain management, individual differences in patient characteristics affect the efficacy of VR intervention. Patients with higher amounts of anxiety sensitivity and discomfort with symptoms of physiological arousal experience the greatest benefit from VR as a tool for managing procedural pain. Another limitation of the technology’s use in the healthcare sector is that doctors can only utilize certain VR technology for the brain and spinal cord. This is due to the fact that these body parts are stable. Other organs in the body move with blood flow and breathing, so they do not lend themselves to this type of imagery. 

In the defense department, much of the VR technology that the military could use is still being developed, and it could take many years before it’s able to be implemented. For example, drones can help build VR models of land territories, which can help soldiers use the safest route to find wounded soldiers in real-time. However, the current software takes hours to create the models, which is way too long to save wounded soldiers. This technology would need further improvements before it is implemented in practice. Additionally, the previously mentioned interactive maps are not currently in use by the military since the VR headsets are quite large. Because of this challenge, developers are looking to move towards an augmented reality model in the future. 

VR has had a significant impact on the healthcare and defense sectors, and my findings convey that the technology has implications for other industries, as well. Since it can take hours to create 3-D models in real-time, first responder organizations might be limited in their use of VR in active search-and-rescue missions. However, a major benefit of VR for commercial use is that it allows dangerous industries to train their personnel in a safe way. This is particularly important today, considering how 4,764 U.S. workers died while on the job in 2020. Preventable workplace deaths are noticeably high for the transportation and construction industries, so I believe VR training would be most useful for those sectors. 

VR developers are already pivoting from creating software for video games to developing industrial training platforms. One of these companies is Pixo VR, which used to create video games but now make training modules for occupations such as firefighters and construction workers. VR companies recognize that they can reap greater rewards from investing in workplace training instead of the gaming market. This trend can not only bring greater revenue for these companies, but it can potentially save many lives in the process.