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Technology designed with real people in mind changes lives. It also saves lives. That’s the goal of Virtual Reality Embedded Naloxone Training (VENT).
Stopping an overdose using naloxone requires quick action in tough situations. Also called Narcan, naloxone is a tool to help first responders and other professionals manage the opioid epidemic. It also helps family, friends, and coworkers stand ready.
“With VENT, we’re creating training that mimics hectic moments so people can feel prepared,” said Scott Barrows, director of OSF Innovation Design Lab at Jump Trading Simulation & Education Center and University of Illinois College of Medicine Peoria clinical associate. “VENT pairs augmented and virtual reality with hands-on practice for administering naloxone.”
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VENT received Illinois Innovation Network (IIN) seed grant funding to develop the innovative layperson-focused training and test it against existing guidance. VENT’s creators will field-test the prototype, improving it using feedback from medical professionals as well as people close to opioid users who could encounter an overdose.
IIN drives inclusive and integrated research, innovation, and economic development across Illinois. Led by the University of Illinois System, IIN issues grants that boost collaborative research among the state’s 12 public universities and regional partners. Proposed Sustaining Illinois projects must wrap up within a year of receiving funding.
VENT team in action
Along with Barrows, VENT collaborators include:
ISU graduate student Matt Kase is putting his programming skills to the test to bring VENT to life. Magnuson involved Kase because of his tech abilities and background in addiction biology.
To create the interactive VENT interface, Kase is learning Apple Vision Pro, which blends digital content with the user’s actual surroundings.
“I’m figuring out what’s feasible for what the team wants VENT to do,” Kase said of the much-hyped Apple tech.
Kase turns to Magnuson when he gets stuck. That’s just one way the researchers’ partnership works.
“We’re using everyone’s experience. We have a really good mix of backgrounds,” Kase said.
Using VENT technology
First, VENT educates users about the dangers of misused opioids—including uber-potent Fentanyl. Then things get hands-on. Holding a Narcan dispenser. Giving the drug through a mannequin’s nostrils.
Then things get real. At least they feel real.
“VENT takes people, for example, into a dance club with dim lighting, loud music,” Kase said. “They’ll see someone on the floor who needs help, someone who has OD’d.”
“We believe learning amid distractions will stick more in people’s minds so they can draw on the skills if they need to.”
In and around Peoria, Barrows incorporates industry and community organizations into the VENT endeavor, including Distillery Labs, a startup hub that works closely with IIN.
“Taking VENT on the road means critical education for schools, communities, and more. Because of IIN we’re able to focus on vulnerable rural and urban communities to ensure our training tech makes the most impact possible,” said Barrows, who holds degrees from all three U of I System universities.
“VENT will show people why opioids are so dangerous, actually show them what’s going on in the brain when someone overdoses. It’s a scary thing.”
The University of Illinois System’s impact through networks of expertise and support for innovators is just part of what makes us Altogether Extraordinary. To share a story idea, please message lmabry@uillinois.edu.
