Engaging rural Australian communities in National Science Week helps increase visibility for women researchers

During a week-long celebration of science, run under the federally-supported National Science Week umbrella, the Catch a Rising Star: women in Queensland research (CaRS) program flew scientists who identify as women to regional and remote communities in the Australian State of Queensland. The aim of the project was twofold: first, to bring science to remote and regional communities in a large, economically diverse state; and second, to determine whether media and public engagement provide career advancement opportunities for women scientists. This paper focuses on the latter goal. The data show: 1) a substantial majority (> 80%) of researchers thought the training and experience provided by the program would help develop her career as a research scientist in the future; 2) the majority (65%) thought the program would help relate her research to end users, industry partners, or stakeholders in the future; and, 3) analytics can help create a compelling narrative around engagement metrics and help to quantify influence. During the weeklong project, scientists reached 600,000 impressions on one social media platform (Twitter) using a program hashtag. The breadth and depth of the project outcomes indicate funding bodies and employers could use similar data as an informative source of metrics to support hiring and promotion decisions. Although this project focused on researchers who identify as women, the lessons learned are applicable to researchers representing a diverse range of backgrounds. Future surveys will help determine whether the CaRS program provided long-term career advantages to participating scientists and communities

Biofabrication VR – The hospital of the future: A serious game for patient education

Opening early 2020 in Brisbane, QLD, Australia, the new Herston Biofabrication Institute will transform the way we provide healthcare by producing innovative personalised and automated treatments. Biofabrication uses a patient’s detailed 3D scanning information and specialised 3D modelling software, 3D printers and tissue engineering to create personalised health solutions. Applications of biofabrication include patient-specific implants, grafts, prosthetics, orthotics, and surgical and radiation therapy aids. The new Institute is a partnership between Metro North Hospital and Health Service (MNHHS) and Queensland University of Technology (QUT). It will host a series of research facilities, along with a patient interface area for medical consultations. An adjacent waiting room is to be fitted with virtual reality (VR) capabilities, to maximise the opportunity to enhance patient knowledge, reduce anxiety, and assist with decision-making. The QUT Biofabrication and Tissue Morphology (BTM) research group teamed up with a group of students to design a virtual reality serious game with the goal to facilitate the adoption of VR technologies in the public health space and to educate the general public about biofabrication technologies and biomaterials. The result of the participatory design and development process is a game aimed at being made available in the Herston Biofabrication Institute waiting room (Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital) to patients meeting their health professional, providing them with a better understanding of biofabrication platform technologies

'A Wanderer's Tale' : The development of a virtual reality application for pain and quality of life in Australian burns and oncology patients

OBJECTIVES: The primary objective of this study was to co-design and conduct a pilot evaluation of a novel, immersive virtual reality (VR) experience for procedural pain and anxiety in an Australian healthcare setting. The secondary objective was to identify key parameters that can facilitate the development and implementation of VR experiences in clinical practice.METHOD: A qualitative, Design Box method was selected for co-design. It was used with adult burns survivors and adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with cancer, and healthcare professionals from these fields to identify the practical and design parameters required for the application of VR technology within the clinical setting. Results informed the development of the VR experience that was evaluated by consumers and healthcare professionals, who completed qualitative surveys. Thematic analysis was conducted on co-design notes and survey data.RESULTS: Procedural pain and management was a challenge for both cohorts, but particularly the burns cohort. Anxiety was significant challenge for both cohorts. Boredom and quality of life was a significant challenge, particularly for the AYA oncology cohort. These results informed the development of "A Wanderers Tale," an Australiana-themed, gaze-controlled VR application for Oculus Quest platforms. Thematic analysis results suggest that cultural preferences, procedural contexts of use, and agency through customization and interaction are three parameters to consider when creating or selecting VR experiences for application in health.SIGNIFICANCE OF RESULTS: This work describes a novel method for the use VR as an adjuvant pain management tool in patients with burns and cancer. The VR experience may provide a culturally, practice and procedure-appropriate tool in comparable settings of care. The study also describes interdisciplinary co-design and evaluation approaches that can help maximize the use of VR to improve healthcare approaches that address clinical challenges in pain, anxiety, and quality of life for patients while in hospital.</p

Applying a human factors approach to proning pillows in the ICU: Opportunities for redesign

Proning, or turning a patient face down, is a technique used to manage patients with acute respiratory distress in intensive care units (ICUs). Research suggests that the type of pillow used in proning may have a significant impact on patient outcomes and increase the risk of disfiguring pressure injuries to the face. However, there is little evidence surrounding the usability of these pillows in the ICU. The aim of this study was to identify redesign opportunities by understanding how the tools, tasks, people, environment, and organization all interact during proning in the ICU. Thirty-six ICU clinicians from two Australian public metropolitan hospitals completed an online questionnaire regarding their opinions and experiences with proned patients and the prevention of pressure injuries. Seven ICU clinicians then completed journey mapping activities to document the key workflows, critical incidents, considerations, and personnel involved in managing proned patients in the ICU. Several barriers and facilitators to pressure injury prevention were identified, including interactions between the various tools (e.g., proning pillows with one opening limits the management of several medical devices), the tasks (e.g., high frequency of repositioning), the people (e.g., clinical inexperience, patient features), the environment (e.g., limited availability of tools), and the organization (e.g., limited number of staff to support tasks). This holistic approach revealed several opportunities for the redesign of proning pillows and associated systems. Key takeaways include the limitations of a one-size-fits-all approach to proning in the ICU context, and the need for flexibility and customization to improve proning pillows, associated medical devices, prophylactic dressings, aids, and processes.</p

Augmented and virtual reality in surgery

Augmented and virtual reality are transforming the practice of healthcare by providing powerful and intuitive methods of exploring and interacting with digital medical data, as well as integrating data into the physical world to create natural and interactive virtual experiences. These immersive technologies use lightweight stereoscopic head-mounted displays (HMDs) to place users into simulated and realistic three-dimensional digital environments, unlocking significant benefits from the seamless integration of digital information with the healthcare practitioner and patient&#x0027;s experience. This review article explores some of the current and emerging technologies and applications in surgery, their benefits and challenges around immersion, spatial awareness and cognition, and their reported and projected use in learning environments, procedure planning and peri-operative contexts and in the surgical theatre. The enhanced access to information, knowledge, and experience enabled by virtual and augmented reality will improve healthcare approaches and lead to better outcomes for patients and the wider community

Safety and usability of proning pillows in intensive care: A scoping review

Objectives: Proning is an established technique for the care of intubated patients with severe respiratory failure. Positioning devices used to support the head and body of patients placed in the prone position are often associated with the formation of pressure injuries. Despite robust literature on the prevention and monitoring of pressure injuries, little is described about the role of proning pillows on pressure injuries. The objective of this review is to understand the extent of evidence pertaining to the safety and usability of different types of proning pillows in the intensive care setting. Review method: A scoping review of the literature was completed using predefined search terms in three databases and identified 296 articles. An additional 26 were included from reference lists. Twenty studies are included in the analysis; most were published in the past 3 years, with >50% in surgical settings. Data sources: Three databases were searched: PubMed, Scopus, and EMBASE. Review methods: The review followed the PRISMA Extension for Scoping Reviews, and data were reviewed using Covidence. Results: The most prevalent proning pillow is a standard, noncontoured foam head positioner. It is responsible for the majority of facial pressure injuries in all settings of care. Memory foam pillows and helmet-based systems offer improved surface pressure distribution, although their usability in the intensive care setting remains poorly studied. Inflatable air-cell-based devices present an alternative, but the lack of supporting research and the costs may explain their poor uptake. Several articles proposed the use of pressure sensor systems to evaluate devices. We propose a set of ergonomic parametres to consider when choosing or designing a positioning device for proned patients. Conclusion: The evidence pertaining to the safety and usability of proning pillows in the intensive care setting is scarce, which provides opportunities for future research to improve the efficacy in the prevention of pressure injuries and the user experience.</p