Virtual and Augmented Reality Games and Tools TransformHospital Experience for Seriously Ill, Isolated Kids
Dana Point, CA - 
(NewMediaWire) - October 26, 2021 - GameChanger Charity and Foretell Reality today announced a partnership to deliver Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) games and tools to leading pediatric facilities through the GameChanger Private Network, helping to transform the hospital experience for seriously ill and isolated children. The VR and AR technologies are specially developed by Foretell Reality to enhance mental wellbeing by mitigating pain, loneliness and anxiety.
Children’s Health of Orange County (CHOC) in California and Children’s Inn at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Md., are among 10 hospitals designated to receive the technology.
GameChanger Private Network, a secure multi-channel, interactive platform provided at no cost to hospitals by GameChanger Charity, is the pipeline that delivers the latest video games, movies, VR and AR experiences, as well as other forms of distraction therapy, to patients, families and caregivers. Foretell Reality is a subsidiary company of The Glimpse Group, Inc., a VR and AR platform company comprised of multiple software and services companies. Foretell developed its technologies to enhance human interaction for patient therapy and support, soft skills training, learning and collaboration.
“Our partnership with GameChanger Charity comes at a critical time for hospitals looking for innovative therapies for patients isolated by the pandemic,” said Dror Goldberg, GM, Foretell Reality & VP Product, The Glimpse Group. “This is exactly what our VR and AR experiences are designed to do.”
Pandemic conditions have worsened the acute anxiety of hospitalization for children isolated in treatment and long-term care. COVID-19 restrictions for immunocompromised patients mean no visitors, no friends or classmates, no pet therapists. In what continues to be a difficult and painful time, innovations like VR and AR can bring hope, connection and joy to those who need it most.
For a kid with cancer who has never visited Paris, or never seen snow, VR can replicate a snowfall in the City of Light. They can be immersed in the 360-degree world of a video game, or hang out with family and friends in the familiar surroundings of home – without leaving the hospital room. With the ability to take someone to the moon or to their own kitchen, the Foretell Reality VR and AR platform offers social interactions such as group therapy (with the privacy of an avatar), a walk in the outdoors, or a game of catch. A lifelong wish can be granted in a 3D virtual world.
“Foretell’s technology offers advanced patient experiences that can have a positive impact on the overall wellbeing of the children we are working to help each day,” said Jim Carol, cofounder and CEO of GameChanger Charity. “Dror and his team share our passion for relieving the pain and suffering of isolated kids and their families, and just as importantly, the caregivers who are working tirelessly on the front lines.”
Carol, a former tech entrepreneur, launched GameChanger Charity as his son, 11-year-old Taylor, persevered through a five-year battle with leukemia with the help of video games and interactive technology. Now 26 and in full recovery, Taylor inspired Jim to build a digital network that could bring social connection and distraction therapy to sick, isolated kids. With the help of Amazon Web Services, Twitch, Microsoft Xbox and other top tech leaders, GameChanger Private Network is available in leading pediatric hospitals across the country.
GameChanger Charity continues to develop the technology and content offerings of its GameChanger Private Network, assisted by a powerhouse board of directors nicknamed the “Tech Avengers,” including Amazon Web Services VP of healthcare Dave Levy, Twitch founder and CEO Emmett Shear, Microsoft Xbox CFO Tim Stuart, Reddit CEO Steve Huffman and YouTube VP of Content Malik Ducard.
The power of play and authentic human interactions, whether in the real or virtual world, have shown positive effects on psycho-social wellbeing and, it is contended, on patient outcomes. As VR capabilities evolve, therapeutic applications and benefits will expand. Hands-free commands will enable a patient who can’t hold a controller to play a video game. Patients can take an in-person tour of a clinical facility and preview their upcoming treatment to reduce anxiety.
Foretell’s VR platform transports users to another dimension, away from the mundane hospital environment, while doing what no other technology can do: put them in the same space, together.
About GameChanger Charity
Based in Dana Point, Calif., GameChanger Charity is a national nonprofit organization founded in 2007 by Jim Carol and his son Taylor, inspired by Taylor’s battle with pediatric cancer. GameChanger’s mission is to bring happiness, hope and connection to hospitalized children all over the world primarily through the GameChanger Private Network, an interactive platform that gives patients, families and caregivers relief by providing free access to the latest video games, movies, virtual reality and other forms of distraction therapy. The charity has grown to help 25,000 children and 6,500 caregivers with more than $25 million in donations. Get involved at gamechangercharity.org and on social media at Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
About Foretell Reality
Foretell Reality is a social virtual reality platform that supports many different types of avatars with varying degrees of realism and expression for different use cases including VR therapy and support, soft skills training, and business collaboration. For more details: https://foretellreality.com/
About The Glimpse Group, Inc.
The Glimpse Group is a diversified Virtual and Augmented Reality platform company, comprised of multiple VR and AR software & services companies, and designed with the specific purpose of cultivating companies in the emerging VR/AR industry. Glimpse's unique business model simplifies challenges faced by VR/AR companies and creates a robust ecosystem, while simultaneously providing investors an opportunity to invest directly into the emerging VR/AR industry via a diversified platform. For more information on The Glimpse Group, please visit www.theglimpsegroup.com
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