In its current usage, "metaverse" primarily refers to the concept of a highly immersive virtual world where people exist, play, and work.
While many consider the metaverse a new term, it is not. The term "metaverse" first appeared in Neal Stephenson's 1992 speculative fiction novel "Snow Crash." In the novel, the metaverse is a shared virtual world that connects all virtual worlds using the internet and augmented reality, where people can exist with their chosen avatars.
Metaverse and health:
Historically, the cornerstone of healthcare has been the physical, face-to-face interaction between a clinician and a patient. However, the advent of telemedicine and virtual visits has demonstrated that the patient-medical professional connection can survive and grow through the internet and digital methods.
In healthcare, the Metaverse concept can be summarized as offering digital health solutions using both AR and VR technologies.
While Metaverse is a rapidly developing concept, we are already seeing practical applications in the healthcare field.
Current Practices
Telehealth : In other words, all technologies that enable remote patient examination, testing, and follow-up can be considered within this scope. For routine consultations that do not require a physical examination (or can be done visually), doctors and nurses can diagnose many minor conditions, which constitute the vast majority of their caseloads, more quickly and efficiently via phone or video call. However, virtual reality technologies, a significant part of the Metaverse, are enabling entirely new possibilities. Anyone who tries it will know that VR experiences give a much stronger sense of "being there" than other virtual environments such as websites, messaging apps, or social media.
Education : Thanks to augmented reality technologies, doctors and other healthcare professionals have the opportunity to observe all organs and systems of the human body in an unprecedentedly realistic way through interactive simulations.
Surgery : AR and VR technologies are beginning to be used in applications such as robotic surgery, including remote surgery. Currently, augmented reality enables surgical personnel to access information more aligned with surgical workflows and the sterile environment of the operating room; for example, by combining data from multiple imaging sources, real-time guidance can be provided to the surgeon within their field of view.
Physical Rehabilitation : AR and VR game mechanics are used to improve patient-healthcare professional communication and increase treatment adherence during follow-up. For example, augmented reality is used to provide better physical rehabilitation to patients under the guidance of visual instructors.
Psychiatry : Another area where it could be particularly useful is psychiatric therapy. Environments can be personalized to suit the patients. Similarly, VR is already being used in avoidance therapy by psychologists and psychiatrists, creating safe environments where patients can interact with situations that cause their anxiety, and every aspect of the interaction can be closely monitored and controlled.
Although Metaverse applications in healthcare are currently used by a limited number of people with limited access, it is predicted that, like all technologies, they will become more widespread and their access and areas of use will increase exponentially once their benefits are demonstrated and/or their potential is revealed.