Augmenting the design box: Virtual reality pain relief for Australian burns survivors case study

Virtual reality (VR) has demonstrated benefits in healthcare in the context of anxiety and pain management. However, this has yet to be applied broadly within the Queensland Health context with solutions that can be integrated within existing clinical workflow, and present opportunities to be of use within multiple hospital departments. We present a case study augmenting the “Design Box”, a method for human-centered design, in the context of the design of a virtual reality experience as an adjunct to standard of care for pain management in adult burns patients within the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital. Journey mapping, hands-on technology experience and the Design Box were used in a focus group session with researchers, burns clinicians, developers and artists. The augmented design box allowed for iterative generation of game ideas, team engagement and cohesion, and the outline of a software development and creative brief and was validated as suitable for three additional upcoming participatory design sessions with complementary participant cohorts.