{"id":24920,"date":"2019-07-29T21:12:15","date_gmt":"2019-07-29T21:12:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tmc.edu\/news\/2019\/07\/virtual-reality-program-distracts-and-entertains-pediatric-patients-ahead-of-surgery\/"},"modified":"2019-08-28T16:10:50","modified_gmt":"2019-08-28T16:10:50","slug":"virtual-reality-program-distracts-and-entertains-pediatric-patients-ahead-of-surgery","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tmc.edu\/news\/2019\/07\/virtual-reality-program-distracts-and-entertains-pediatric-patients-ahead-of-surgery\/","title":{"rendered":"Virtual reality program distracts and entertains pediatric patients ahead of surgery"},"content":{"rendered":"
Charlie Pennell drifted into drowsiness with his head turned to the side as he watched a pair of cartoon aliens projected on the wall.<\/p>\n
The 10-year-old, who held an anesthesia mask to his face, was relaxed and enjoying the interaction. The characters asked him to call out their names, and with each breath, the nitrous oxide slowly took effect as he fell asleep on the operating table.<\/p>\n
The non-traditional method for entertainment while administering anesthesia is part of a new program at Texas Children\u2019s Hospital<\/a> aimed at calming pediatric patients ahead of surgery. Known as the CHARIOT program<\/a>\u2014Childhood Anxiety Reduction through Innovation and Technology\u2014the suite of entertainment options is designed to engage and distract patients in the pre-operative setting and during the initial stages of anesthesia with video and virtual reality.<\/p>\n \u201cThe use of our various technologies has made it easier to focus our patients\u2019 attention away from an experience that is new and different and possibly frightening to them and on to something that they\u2019re much more comfortable with\u2014and it helps them work through this experience to get surgical procedures that they very much need,\u201d said Clint Fuller, M.D.<\/a>, a pediatric anesthesiologist at Texas Children\u2019s Hospital. \u201cIt\u2019s made it a much easier process both for them and for us.\u201d<\/p>\n The suite of technology includes different options based on patient preference and maturity. For younger kids, a projector called the \u201cBERT,\u201d which stands for Bedside Entertainment Relaxation Theater, can play a selection of popular movies, including “Moana,” “Coco,” “Finding Dory,” “Cars,” and “Minions.”<\/p>\n \u201cIf there\u2019s a long wait-time and the patient starts to get anxious during the wait, it\u2019s a nice way to really distract them so their minds are not on the actual surgery or the fact that they\u2019re hungry from fasting,\u201d explained pediatric anesthesiologist Kathleen Chen, M.D., M.S.<\/a>, who leads the CHARIOT Program at Texas Children\u2019s. \u201cI usually tell them that today is your day, and whatever you want, we can give that to you.\u201d<\/p>\n