Healthcare environments can intimidating for children, especially during hospital visits or medical procedures. The unfamiliar surroundings, procedures and the feeling of a lack of control in a hospital can cause children to not only feel emotionally threatened but sometimes have psychological trauma which children show through emotions such as anxiety, aggression or anger etc. This not only causes issues now such as non-cooperation and delayed treatments but studies show that some people tend to avoid health care completely later in life due to childhood medical anxiety.
I propose an app which also has augmented reality features. The app will aims to teach children in a playful way about what to expect at the hospital, doctors or for any medical procedures. It will allow them to virtually tour the locations before going and use augmented reality to scan tools/ cards relating to equipment that the doctor uses to make these scary moments more of a calm learning experience.
Primary Stakeholder: Children aged between 6-12 years old who are old enough to begin forming emotional associations, can use a mobile or tablet independently or with little guidance and are expressing nervous emotions about medical procedures and visits
Secondary Stakeholder: A parent or carer who are experiencing helplessness when trying to explain medical procedures and interactions to their children as they want to reduce their anxiety. They want the tools to be able to reassure their children, provide them with age appropriate explanations and support and prepare them for upcoming visits
Tertiary Stakeholder: Healthcare professionals such as doctors, nurses or hospital staff who are interacting with children before or during procedures and are looking for a solution to create a smoother, calmer interaction with children by reducing emotional distress and enhancing communication.
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