A ‘mixed reality’ simulator concept for future Medical Emergency Response Team training

Abstract

The UK Defence Medical Service's Pre-Hospital Emergency Care (PHEC) capability includes rapid-deployment Medical Emergency Response Teams (MERTs) comprising tri-service trauma consultants, paramedics and specialised nurses, all of whom are qualified to administer emergency care under extreme conditions to improve the survival prospects of combat casualties. The pre-deployment training of MERT personnel is designed to foster individual knowledge, skills and abilities in PHEC and in small team performance and cohesion in 'mission-specific' contexts. Until now, the provision of airborne pre-deployment MERT training had been dependent on either the availability of an operational aircraft (eg, the CH-47 helicopter) or access to one of only two ground-based facsimiles of the's rear cargo/passenger cabin. Although MERT training has high priority, there will always be competition with other military taskings for access to helicopter assets (and for other platforms in other branches of the Armed Forces). This paper describes the development of an inexpensive, reconfigurable and transportable MERT training concept based on 'mixed reality' technologies-in effect the 'blending' of real-world objects of training relevance with virtual reality reconstructions of operational contexts.

Virtual Reality Simulation in Nontechnical Skills Training for Healthcare Professionals

“…Our search may also have been limited by the definitions of VR and NTS, as the keywords may not have used a very specific terminology, such as avatar, 3dimensional, HMD, mixed or augmented reality. Augmented reality, the integration of digital information into the physical world in real time, or mixed reality, the use of real objects to enhance simulations, are related to virtual environments or VR settings (67) . Thus, some studies may use simulators based on VR technology but not specify it in their keywords.…”

Machine Learning and Learning Machines: KI in der Aus- und Weiterbildung

“…An dieser Stelle kommen in der Aus-und Weiterbildung an digitalen Methoden bspw. schon Virtual-und Mixed-Reality-Simulatoren ins Spiel, wo die re-alen Objekte mit virtuellen Objekten "verschmelzen" [33,34]. Die ersten Prototypen kommen aus dem Militärbereich, wo Simulatoren zur Schulung der medizinischen Notfallteams entwickelt wurden.…”

“…Die ersten Prototypen kommen aus dem Militärbereich, wo Simulatoren zur Schulung der medizinischen Notfallteams entwickelt wurden. Das Team -ausgestattet mit VR-Brillen und Bewegungssensoren -übt die Notfallszenarien im virtuellen Innenraum des Rettungshelikopters [34].…”

“…Das Erzeugen des optischen Realismus erfolgt zunehmend mithilfe von KI-Algorithmen zur Bildbearbeitung [22,39]. Die moderne (Spiel-)Software kann beispielsweise die virtuelle Umgebung in Echtzeit an die Handlungen des Spielers anpassen oder über Sensordaten die Körperbewegungen in die virtuelle Welt hineinprojizieren [9,33,34,[40][41][42]. Und obwohl im medizinischen Bereich diese Vorgehensweise noch nicht weit verbreitet ist, ist eine solche Weiterentwicklung im Bereich des Serious Gaming oder beim virtuellen Üben der Notfallszenarien bald die Realität.…”

Prehospital emergency medicine – UK military experience

“…Novel techniques using virtual reality simulation are also being explored and may provide an environment for individualised and portable training in the near future. 16 Conclusion PHEM is a subspecialty of anaesthesia that presents many challenges to the anaesthetist. MPHEM is particularly unique with respect to the volume and acuity of presenting casualties and by the high prevalence of penetrating and blast injuries, which are unfamiliar to most UK-based practitioners.…”