MEDICAL UNIVERSITY OF LODZ AS PROJECT PARTNER IN AAL COMPETITION (CALL 2020)
Medical University of Lodz is a partner of the international project entitled: Bringing the beneficial cognitive, social and physical effects of immersive training to the high-functioning senior home-user CoSoPhy FX. The primary aim of the project includes the design and assessment of the usefulness of full virtual reality-based solutions (VR-based solutions) for seniors (aged 65-80 years). The project assumption is to create virtual reality for exercises which enhance motor and cognitive functioning and thereby improve physical, mental and social well-being of seniors. The projected benefits of the method implementation do not only concern senior populations but also their families, clinical staff, rehabilitation and care or research centres.
Three start-ups (Senopi, SenX, TMMC) entered the project with prototypes of their innovative solutions for: a) providing Virtual Reality (VR) health care to seniors, b) VR motion‐tracking and c) using music to promote health. The prototypes will be subjected to usability testing, co-‐design and co‐creation workshops, with the help of an end‐user organisation (AkaBer) that promotes the interests of seniors towards the development of innovative solutions, to produce an improved solution that integrates the three initial components into a single service. To investigate whether the use of the service can result in health benefits for healthy and high‐functioning seniors, a clinical intervention study will be conducted at the Medical University of Lodz. In parallel, the service is tested by clinician and patient end‐users in a rehabilitation clinic (Cato), who produce complementary user feedback, leading to further improvements of the service. The final version of the service is subjected to a final usability test, to assess its market‐readiness.
The project is primarily expected to result in a service that improves certain cognitive and motor abilities in healthy seniors, thereby distancing them further from clinical thresholds for age-‐related debilitation and prolonging their healthy life years. In parallel, the project is expected to demonstrate the positive financial effects such a service can have on the senior healthcare ecosystem, as well as to provide a platform for scientific research labs to increase their efficiency, monetise their research output and maximise their societal impact.
The project will be implemented by the Department of Geriatric Psychiatry and Psychotic Disorders MUL.
Within the framework of AAL (Call2020) funds were obtained for the project on: Bringing the beneficial cognitive, social and physical effects of immersive training to the high-functioning seniors. The total project value: € 1 826 470,67. National funds: PLN 741 198,00.
The project is funded by National Research and Development Centre within AAL (Call 2020).
Implementation period: 1 June 2021 – 31 May 2023
