Drisdelle Sara, Power Liam, Thieu Scott, Sheriko Jordan
Department of Pediatrics, Izaak Walton Killam Health Centre, Halifax, NS, Canada.
Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada.
JMIR Res Protoc. 2022 Oct 6;11(10):e39140. doi: 10.2196/39140.
Power wheelchairs can empower children with physical limitations to gain independence in their everyday lives; however, traditional methods of power wheelchair training are often limited by poor accessibility and safety concerns. Immersive virtual reality technology (IVRT) uses advanced display technology to place users in a fully immersive web-based environment that can support real-time skills training, often requiring less resources and fewer safety concerns than real-world methods. IVRT interventions have shown to be a feasible training option among adult power wheelchair users; however, there is still a need to understand the technical and clinical feasibility of developing an IVRT power wheelchair training tool for the pediatric population.
This proposed study aims to use expert feedback and an iterative design process to develop an IVRT training intervention for pediatric power wheelchair skill development.
This 3-phase feasibility study will be conducted within the assistive technology unit of a public pediatric hospital. Separate participant groups will be recruited for each phase, consisting of approximately 10 to 15 clinicians (phase 1), 10 pediatric power wheelchair users (phase 2), and 15 to 20 additional pediatric power wheelchair users (phase 3). Phase 1 will be conducted to gather feedback on the baseline IVRT training intervention. Clinicians will test the intervention and assess its usability and acceptability using qualitative and quantitative methods. Phase 1 participants will also be invited back for a subsequent session to reassess a revised version of the training intervention that has been updated based on their previous feedback. Phase 2 and phase 3 will also use mixed methods to gather feedback on the usability, acceptability, and user experience of the IVRT training intervention from current pediatric power wheelchair users. In addition, phase 3 participants will perform a skills transfer assessment to compare power mobility skill performance between the virtual reality and real-life environments. Data gathered in phase 2 will be used to further refine the IVRT intervention, whereas phase 3 data will be used to statistically evaluate the final version.
This study was approved by the Izaak Walton Killam Health Centre research ethics board in August 2021. Phase 1 testing began in February 2022. The entire study is expected to be completed by 2023.
The results of this study will be used to create an IVRT training intervention for pediatric power wheelchair skill development through an iterative and collaborative design process. Results may also assist in directing future studies in this area.
INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): DERR1-10.2196/39140.
电动轮椅可以帮助身体有残疾的儿童在日常生活中获得独立；然而，传统的电动轮椅训练方法往往受到可达性差和安全问题的限制。沉浸式虚拟现实技术（IVRT）使用先进的显示技术，将用户置于一个完全沉浸式的基于网络的环境中，该环境可以支持实时技能训练，通常比现实世界的方法需要更少的资源和更少的安全问题。IVRT干预已被证明是成年电动轮椅使用者可行的训练选择；然而，仍有必要了解为儿科人群开发IVRT电动轮椅训练工具的技术和临床可行性。
本拟进行的研究旨在利用专家反馈和迭代设计过程，开发一种用于儿科电动轮椅技能发展的IVRT训练干预措施。
这项三阶段可行性研究将在一家公立儿科医院的辅助技术部门进行。每个阶段将招募不同的参与者群体，包括大约10至15名临床医生（第一阶段）、10名儿科电动轮椅使用者（第二阶段）和另外15至20名儿科电动轮椅使用者（第三阶段）。第一阶段将收集对基线IVRT训练干预措施的反馈。临床医生将测试该干预措施，并使用定性和定量方法评估其可用性和可接受性。第一阶段的参与者还将被邀请参加后续会议，重新评估根据他们之前的反馈更新后的训练干预措施修订版。第二阶段和第三阶段也将使用混合方法，从当前的儿科电动轮椅使用者那里收集对IVRT训练干预措施的可用性、可接受性和用户体验的反馈。此外，第三阶段的参与者将进行技能转移评估，以比较虚拟现实环境和现实生活环境中的动力移动技能表现。第二阶段收集的数据将用于进一步完善IVRT干预措施，而第三阶段的数据将用于对最终版本进行统计评估。
本研究于2021年8月获得伊萨克·沃尔顿·基拉姆健康中心研究伦理委员会的批准。第一阶段测试于2022年2月开始。整个研究预计将于2023年完成。
本研究结果将用于通过迭代和协作设计过程，创建一种用于儿科电动轮椅技能发展的IVRT训练干预措施。研究结果还可能有助于指导该领域未来的研究。
国际注册报告识别码（IRRID）：DERR1-10.2196/39140。
