AppliedVR, a Los Angeles-based virtual reality (VR) company, has announced a new research project focused on improving care for Medicaid patients and other vulnerable populations. The project is a collaboration with S.O.L.V.E. Health Tech, a health equity accelerator based out of the University of California San Francisco (UCSF).
The partnership’s aim is to help ensure underserved and diverse patient populations are able to receive the healthcare they need instead. The specialists at S.O.L.V.E. Health Tech will help AppliedVR learn more about what they, and other healthcare technology companies, can do to improve patient care across the board.
“Patients who face socioeconomic or social determinant-related burdens and challenges should not be limited in treatment options—especially if or when in need of novel or non-pharmacological treatment alternatives,” Matthew Stoudt, co-founder and CEO of AppliedVR, said in a prepared statement. “Through this collaboration with S.O.L.V.E. Health Tech and our commitment to pioneering VR as a new standard of care, AppliedVR aims to help move the needle towards health equity, reduce health care costs, and most importantly, improve health outcomes for patients.”
“The opportunity to work alongside AppliedVR in its quest to deliver virtual reality treatment to all patients helps fulfill our mission because of the sheer unmet need in the space of safe and effective pain management,” Urmimala Sarkar, MD, MPH, co-founder of S.O.L.V.E. Health Tech and a professor at UCSF, said in the same statement. “The unique ability of virtual reality to create an immersive and interactive environment has the potential to be a cost-effective strategy to deliver pain management for diverse patients, in the time and place of their choosing.”
Michael has more than 16 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.