IMMERSIVE AESTHETICS

John Dabill considers virtual reality’s applications in the field of aesthetics

Arecent survey of 400 healthcare professionals saw over 90% of respondents reveal they expected to introduce virtual reality (VR) training as a direct solution by 2026.

Amidst advancing techniques, training and upskilling healthcare professionals quickly and effectively is driving demand for new methods. In immersive VR environments, people can ‘learn by doing’ to a much greater effect and complete repeatable training on 3D simulations that actively put their skills into practice - no matter their location.

Aesthetic Medicine (AM): How would immersive VR environments help aesthetic practitioners ‘learn by doing’?

John Dabill (JD): Immersive VR means that people can practice as often as they like in realistic scenarios. 3D models can be built to a high standard, with headsets like the VIVE Focus 3 capable of 4K resolution for superfine details. In addition, the precision in tracking is down to the millimetre, which means practitioners can replicate movements accurately.

AM: How can you introduce VR and how has it helped teach surgical practice remotely?

JD: We’re seeing across many industries that any scenario that involves training can benefit from VR. In the medical field, UCL and ARuVR have put together a great immersive training course. The most important benefit is that it removes patient risk. Training used to be on live patients, which required students to be in the same location and to wait for the right patient to come along. Now training can be done wherever and whenever needed; students can simply put on a headset and practice.

AM: What are the pros and cons of VR?

JD: VR headsets have come a long way in the last few years. The set-up and costs involved used to be a barrier to use for some organisations, but now they can be used anywhere without any special technical expertise required.

AM: How would the software better protect and safeguard aesthetic patients?

JD: The software can be tailored to the needs of practitioners, so when they’re training, they can have an ultra-realistic feel for it. For example, the Fundamental Surgery course has incorporated haptic feedback, so trainees use copies of real-world tools, which are then designed to give force feedback, so it feels like you’re interacting with flesh and bone. Other training programmes have ‘checkpoints’ in the routine so the trainee cannot proceed until they’ve completed certain tasks, helping to build muscle memory. Ultimately, practice makes perfect, and practising without putting any patients at risk is the ideal scenario.

AM: What is the impact of remote, collaborative virtual VR training on the environment?

JD: Another big benefit of VR-based training is that trainees can go through scenarios anywhere, any time. This means people don’t have to travel to one central location for a lesson, and their instructor can still join the session they’re in, live, to provide real-time feedback. Research from Cornell University in the US suggests that wide adoption of remote-based VR training can help to make a difference in global warming and slow down the negative impact.

AM: What do you believe is the future of VR in aesthetics?

JD: When we look at how VR is being used across the world in different industries, we honestly feel like the possibilities are endless. Headsets are becoming smaller, lighter, and more intuitive while maintaining high resolution and high tracking accuracy.

In addition, any number of scenarios can be recreated in 3D models, so trainees can learn on varied models and not just a singular static model. All of that, as well as the ability to use VR whenever needed, saves time, and money, and, most importantly, means there’s no risk to patients.

Aesthetics has all the right conditions to benefit hugely from immersive training.

JOHN DABILL

John Dabill is director of HTC EMEA, and part of the EMEA Leadership team. Since joining HTC, Dabill has been working with customers and partners across the EMEA region to develop XR solutions and immersive experiences that will def ine the next generation of computing, across hardware, software, the metaverse and more.