In order to alleviate the anxiety that comes from sitting in a hospital waiting room, Tampa's St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital teamed up with design firm Haneke Design to create an interactive app called 'UnMonsters.' As "the first hospital-based game app in the country," UnMonsters sets a new precedent for treating pediatric patients.
UnMonsters is a mobile app for kids that can be played on a smartphone or tablet. The game itself is set in a hospital and the goal is to capture all the different creatures lurking in each room. In addition to catching monsters, players must also answer health-related questions each round, which add an educational component to the game. There is even a social feature that allows kids to play with other patients in the hospital.
The idea behind the new app is to make children more comfortable in a hospital setting by giving them a distraction that alleviates anxiety and keeps them entertained.
What's Driving This Trend
- Interactive Hospital Apps
- The development of interactive apps for hospitals offers a disruptive innovation opportunity to alleviate anxiety and provide entertainment for patients.
- Gamification in Healthcare
- The integration of gaming elements in healthcare apps creates a disruptive innovation opportunity to engage patients and make their experience more enjoyable.
- Social Connectivity in Pediatric Healthcare
- The inclusion of social features in pediatric healthcare apps presents a disruptive innovation opportunity to connect patients and provide a sense of community during hospital stays.
Who This Affects Most
- Healthcare Technology
- The healthcare technology industry can benefit from developing innovative apps that improve patient experiences and outcomes.
- Mobile Gaming
- The mobile gaming industry has an opportunity to expand into the healthcare sector by creating entertaining and educational apps for patients.
- Pediatric Healthcare
- The pediatric healthcare industry can embrace interactive apps to create a more positive and engaging hospital experience for young patients.
