Virtual reality, or VR, is now a common utterance of the 21st century. Ask any youngster today and they will not have known vocabulary without it. But its roots go back to 1987 when the founder of the Visual Programming Lab (VPL), Jaron Lanier, first coined the phrase. Today VR has morphed into various forms, all of which have a degree of overlap in their functions and usage.
The evolution of VR was given an unexpected, and perhaps undesirable, boost due to the international COVID-19 pandemic. Across the world, even the simplest of communications was forced into the world of cyber science. Within a very short space of time, VR became more efficient and popular. That popularity, along with all its advantages. has not declined with the abating pandemic.
Every area of life is now affected by VR in one form or another. Our social and professional lives have changed immeasurably, as have the administrative, economic, and industrial spheres within which we operate. Inevitably, the medical profession has not been unaffected by VR. The medical profession has been at the forefront of raising the bar in the security and efficiency of virtual reality.
Some medical establishments have employed the surge in the use of VR to streamline and trim back their services. Others have embraced it to improve upon the care of their patients as a complement to their more traditional medical services. An example of this successful melding can be seen at the Samitivej Virtual Hospital in Thailand.
The Samitivej Hospital Group has always had an enviable reputation for its exemplary level of medical expertise, both within the kingdom of Thailand, and worldwide. Now, as a member of the American Telemedicine Association, it is reaching out to ever more numbers of people desiring the very best in medical care by bringing their expertise to people in their own homes or workplaces.
Samitivej Hospital’s VR Services
The virtual hospital is available to anyone with an internet connection or phone signal, anywhere in the world, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This not only brings convenience to the public but also immediate intervention with guidance and advice when it is most needed. However it must be noted that should urgent, direct medical attention be required, a client will be advised to contact emergency medical services.
Each VR consultation is conducted by one of Samitivej Hospital’s qualified doctors who is able to give guidance and advice on all manner of medical issues. Additionally, they can arrange home visits to collect blood and urine samples, and to deliver prescribed medication.
Samitivej Hospital is synonymous with quality medical care, within the kingdom of Thailand, and globally. The VR team has been meticulously selected, not only to reflect the hospital group’s high standards but also for their clinical skills in particular fields. This ensures specific clinical guidance, as opposed to generalized advice which is often given by other medical services.
As part of Samitivej’s mantra, that being, prevention is better than cure, the VR service follows in the same way. Prevention can of course stop the occurrence of medical issues, but preventative medicine also helps to stop minor, existing issues from developing into something more serious. As such, the VR service can give extensive preventative medical advice.
Expert advice is on hand to cover both men’s and women’s specific medical issues. There are experts to advise on both male and female menopause, loss of libido, erectile problems, depression, infertility, and allergic reactions but a few of the medical issues that are dealt with by the VR team.
Samitivej Hospital has numerous specific, dedicated clinics, and their VR service encompasses them all. From the pediatric, child GI, and child development clinics to the colorectal, orthopedic, general health, and adult clinics, experts give specific medical guidance and advice.
Samitivej Hospital’s VR Control Room
The VR control room is located at the Samitivej Srinakarin Hospital in the heart of Bangkok. With its single-purpose concept and technology-led design, the center is at the cutting edge of VR medical services. Fully trained doctors and nurses, with further training in VR consultation techniques, staff the facility 24/7.
The latest technology not only allows real-time consultations via VR but also ensures absolute security for all parties. The most up-to-date systems are employed to secure connections between the data system and the control center. Patient confidentiality is at the forefront of the center’s security safeguarding patient data.
Accessing Samitivej Virtual Hospital
There are numerous methods of accessing the VR center. Originally developed by Delos, the VR control has adopted the Well application for Android and iOS. In addition to this, clients can contact Samitivej’s VR control room through Samitivej Hospital’s website.
The Samitivej Virtual Hospital can also be accessed using the Line application using their Line ID: @Samitivej for direct contact with the control room. There are also partnership connections: myAIS, MTL click app, and Sansiri home service app, SCG. Whichever contact method is preferred, the same secure technology applies.
Clients are advised, when accessing the VR control room, to ensure they are situated in a place with good, secure internet or phone service coverage. They should be in a place that allows them to speak openly in privacy. Clients should also have to hand in their national ID card, or passport where applicable, which is necessary as part of the identity authentication process.
We are now, without doubt, in a world that is now largely digital, and forever progressing along the road of digital revolution affecting every area of our lives. An individual’s medical care is the most important part of anyone’s life. Thus, it is essential to choose a medical facility that encompasses all that is relevant in the world of medical science.
The only facility that truly embraces the technology of virtual reality as an additional tool to its medical services, as opposed to using it to cut back on other services, is the Samitivej Virtual Hospital in Thailand, available to all, locally, nationally, and internationally.