Gangnam Severance Hospital introduced part of its virtual reality (VR) programs currently under development, during a symposium on virtual reality in clinical practice, on Wednesday.

Professor Kim Jae-jin of the neuropsychiatry department and head of the VR program at Gangnam Severance Hospital demonstrates how VR is applied to the medical sector, at the hospital in Dogok-dong, southern Seoul, Wednesday.

Professor Gong Tae-young of the department of emergency medicine demonstrated an example, by making a presentation on the current state of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) lessons in Korea, and how VR could change the teaching field.

“As of 2015, only 38.1 percent of Korean people received CPR education, and half of the people who received the training only heard lectures without having practical training,” Professor Gong said. “One of the problems is the CPR training is still too long, taking up to four hours to complete the program.”

Gong explained that the hospitals VR device for CPR training could make the tiring CPR education a lot shorter and more enjoyable.

“The VR program, including AED (defibrillator), is user-friendly and offers special realistic situations,” Gong said. “Also, users can experience live environments such as subway or the street and make interactions with other characters that appear within the VR.”

Professor Kim Eun-joo of the pediatric psychiatry department introduced the hospital’s program for the treatment of game addiction,.

“We have developed a game-craving program so that we could use it on VR machines when treating children,” Professor Kim said. The hospital has also added a gaming aspect to the program, such as grading levels and giving missions to the user, she said.

Gang Sang-wook, the general manager of FNI, a VR company, made a presentation about a virtual reality program that can treat panic and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The company is working with Gangnam Severance Hospital to develop the program.

Service users can experience the contents of panic disorder and ADHD training designed by Gangnam Severance medical staff wearing VR device at home without visiting the hospital.

The company also developed an AI chatbot that helps patients conduct daily conversation and self-management for preventive measures. “The ultimate goal of this program is to treat patients with panic disorder and ADHD, and even the ordinary people who may show early symptoms,” Gang said.

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