ST. LOUIS - A local professor at Southern Illinois University believes virtual reality can help solve the evergrowing opioid crisis.
In 2020, more than 90,000 people died in the United States of opioid overdose with half of those deaths occurring in their own homes.
Southern Illinois University professor Wasantha Jayawardene and his colleagues believe a virtual reality-based training tool may offer the key to saving lives with the group receiving a $60,000 grant from both Illinois Innovation Network and SIU to study their idea.
Jayawardene is a professor at the university with dual appointments as assistant professor of public health in the School of Human Sciences and an adjunct professor of population science and policy in the SIU School of Medicine.
Jayawardene joined Total Information A.M. to discuss his research and his group project, titled “Developing and Testing the Virtual Reality Embedded Naloxone Training (VENT).”
According to Jaywardene, he says many opioid deaths are preventable, but reaction must be quick and effective. In most cases, many lives can be saved by the administration of naloxone, commonly known by its brand name Narcan.
However, studies indicate that most people are uncomfortable being the “good Samaritan” in real life, and while plenty of training programs exist, getting people to participate in them isn’t so easy.
That's where Jaywardene believes virtual reality can come in to help to the opioid crisis. What if the training was fun and almost like the video game that if a situation comes up in real life, the participants would be so comfortable administering Narcan if they encountered a potential opioid overdose?
The project will use state-of-the-art technology to deliver the training that blends the virtual and physical worlds, using the actual spray device and a manikin along with a virtual reality training headset.
“The use of virtual reality in life support trainings can make the users feel immersed in their surroundings and improve learning engagement,” Jayawardene said.
Initially a group of 15 regular people, along five experts with diverse backgrounds will “test drive” the virtual reality training module. Then Jaywardene and his group will adjust the training based on the results.
The group will field test it throughout the state of Illinois to determine whether the VENT is superior to traditional community trainings in usability and preference.
The goal of the model is to see ff the VENT model is found to be more effective. If they do, they will attempt to find more funding to implement the training on a larger scale, with the focus shifting to high-risk groups.