Digital Health:
Recreational Therapy (RT) Treatment Technique
Video Gaming
- U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
About Video Gaming Therapy
What is Video Gaming Therapy?
- Video Gaming Therapy uses commercial video games for the prevention, treatment and rehabilitation of health conditions.
How We Provide Video Gaming Therapy
- Inclusion Therapies integrates video gaming and virtual reality technology utilizing AMD Ryzen 5 3600 3.6 GHZ + AMD RX 580 8 GB graphics card on a 30" FHD Ultrawide 21:9 2560x1080p 200Hz refresh rate curved gaming monitor, Oculus/ Meta Quest 1 and 2 headsets and the PlayStation 5 console.
- Video Gaming therapy sessions are online within a game (e.g., Fortnite, if the client has internet access and hardware/software) or in-person at our Lake Travis Center for Therapeutic Recreation Technology (CTRT).
- The client and Recreational Therapist will select an age-appropriate (based on Entertainment Software Rating Board at ERSB.org) and/ or health-supportive content Video Game relating to their healthcare outcomes. For example, someone with challenges with effective communication or emotional regulation may select the video game of professional soccer (FIFA) to play during a session to improve their ability to express their ideas to teammates (and/or accept undesired outcomes while maintaining control of their emotions, for instance, when they lose).
- The therapist team may play on a team with client, or on an opposing team or observe the client.
- FOR PEDIATRIC CLIENTS: During each private session, the client will be engaged in video game play and then will have a debriefing session (to talk about the video game reactions). Client will practice stopping game play (in acceptance of previously agreed to session time limits) while managing emotional responses in a healthy manner.
Evidence
- The Washington Post (11/11/2019)
- "[T]he therapeutic use of technology to help develop physical, cognitive, perceptual and visual skills to improve a patient’s level of function and independence."
- - University of Michigan, Medicine Inpatient Rehabilitation Computer Therapy Lab, Regaining Lost Function with the Help of Video Games, 7/25/2017
- "[O]nline interactions allow individuals with mental health challenges to receive much needed social support and a sense of connectedness or belonging (28, 29), which are ideal interventions for individuals with suicidal ideation and behavior." - Colder Carras, M., Van Rooij, A. J., Spruijt-Metz, D., Kvedar, J., Griffiths, M. D., Carabas, Y., & Labrique, A. (2018). Commercial Video Games As Therapy: A New Research Agenda to Unlock the Potential of a Global Pastime. Frontiers in psychiatry, 8, 300. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2017.00300
- "On 15 June [2020], the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced its approval of a first-person racing game called EndeavorRx. [...A] video game became available by prescription in the United States. This first-ever FDA-approved digital treatment[...] was scientifically designed to challenge a child’s brain during ADHD treatment[.]"
- - Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), Video Game Approved as Prescription Medicine U.S. Drug safety agency says EndeavorRx has proven therapeutic effect, 7/31/2020
- "[S]uccess in playing the computer solitaire game FreeCell may be useful to monitor cognitive status in adults with mild cognitive impairment (8), while new augmented reality games such as Pokémon GO could be useful to promote physical activity among those who are normally reluctant to engage (7). For children undergoing surgery, a hand-held game was more useful in relieving preoperative anxiety than a dose of midazolam (10). Puzzle games such as Tetris and Bejeweled have been shown to reduce depression, stress, and even prevent flashbacks after a traumatic event."
- Colder Carras, M., Van Rooij, A. J., Spruijt-Metz, D., Kvedar, J., Griffiths, M. D., Carabas, Y., & Labrique, A. (2018). Commercial Video Games As Therapy: A New Research Agenda to Unlock the Potential of a Global Pastime. Frontiers in psychiatry, 8, 300. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2017.00300
- "Gaming promotes the repetition, intensity and task-oriented training needed to support an individual’s rehabilitation goals.[...for] patients include those recovering from strokes as well as spinal cord and head injuries"
- University of Michigan, Medicine Inpatient Rehabilitation Computer Therapy Lab, Regaining Lost Function with the Help of Video Games, 7/25/2017
- "[T]here is emerging empirical research into the area of commercial video games as therapy (VGTx). [...O]ne might consider VGTx as a different take on games for health. Instead of making a game as a way to address a health problem, we suggest adapting or incorporating games that millions of people already play into interventions that promote health." -Colder Carras, M., Van Rooij, A. J., Spruijt-Metz, D., Kvedar, J., Griffiths, M. D., Carabas, Y., & Labrique, A. (2018). Commercial Video Games As Therapy: A New Research Agenda to Unlock the Potential of a Global Pastime. Frontiers in psychiatry, 8, 300. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2017.00300
