|
|
|
|
|
Immersion Medical (formerly HT Medical Systems, Inc.), based in Gaithersburg, Maryland, designs, manufactures and markets computer-based medical simulation systems worldwide. The systems integrate proprietary computer software and tactile feedback robotics with new economical, high-powered computers to create highly realistic simulations. The company's three key product lines are the CathSim® Vascular Access Simulator, the AccuTouch® Endoscopy Simulator and the AccuTouch® Endovascular Simulator. Immersion Medical's parent company--Immersion Corporation (San Jose, California)--is a recognized leader in developing, licensing and marketing haptic technology and products with applications to medicine, computing and entertainment, automotive, and 3D modeling.
Phase I (1995) and Phase II (1996-1998) SBIR funding from the Navy spawned the first CathSim simulator for training in needle-stick and associated intravenous catheterization procedures. The system provides nurses and physicians with the tactile and visual experiences of performing these procedures, plus supporting didactic material. CathSim currently delivers six modules (Adult IV, Pediatric IV, Geriatric IV, Phlebotomy, Peripherally Inserted Central Catheterization, and Skills Assessment), with two more modules (central venous catheterization and needle thoracentesis) in development. Since its release in April 1998, 538 CathSim systems have been sold to over 450 institutions. Customers include institutions such as Harvard University, the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Stanford University, Northwestern, and the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. Among the reasons for CathSim's success are its immersive realism, uniqueness, affordability, portability, and its potential to facilitate long-term cost savings through improved clinical outcomes, replacement of traditional training methods (e.g. mannequins, cadavers) whose costs are cumulative, and lower demand for instructor time and clinical resources.
Simulation technology developed by Immersion Medical has had diverse benefits to the DoD. In August 2002, the Army ordered 44 of our CathSim systems for incorporation into its training programs at Fort Sam Houston. We have also sold a dozen CathSims to Walter Reed and other Army facilities. These devices enhance and streamline the acquisition and maintenance of procedural skills, which translates to enhanced clinical care to military personnel. Among the specific benefits of simulation-based training are that it:
Published studies have shown that Immersion Medical simulators not only significantly improve practitioner performance, but that they also exceed traditional training methods in the acquisition of procedural skills. Furthermore, they also have been shown to measure what they are intended to, and to discriminate users based on procedural experience.
The DoD's SBIR/STTR program has funded nine Immersion Medical development projects over the last eight years, allowing the company to evolve into the world's first commercial producer of virtual reality medical simulators. Immersion Medical (formerly HT Medical) has benefited greatly from the SBIR/STTR program and, as a result, the company's medical simulation technology is benefiting the healthcare industry worldwide. Today trainees can get skills acquisition, maintenance and assessment in procedures ranging from colonoscopy to cardiac catheterization without the need for human cadavers, mannequins, animals, or unsuspecting patients. Immersion Medical thanks the SBIR/STTR program for its generous contributions, which have enabled the company to pursue technical excellence and to chart new pathways in medical simulation.
