Making An Impact – ‘HoloBaby’ Telesimulation Technology

“ZIP code should not determine outcome.” – Dr. Michael Ferguson, Pediatric Critical Care

‘HoloBaby’ is a mixed-reality simulator. Wearing Hololens goggles, care team members train on a realistic neonate hologram projected onto a basic manikin to enable neonatal resuscitation training. This innovative technology holds tremendous promise to use technology to extend simulation training to rural areas or hospitals without access to simulation. Watch this video to learn more from our remarkable doctors and Innovation Team at MaineHealth.

The number of births in hospitals across Maine varies drastically. Most communities have much lower volumes than The Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital, and some rural Maine hospitals have as few as one birth per month.

Thankfully, only 2% of newborns require resuscitation or intubation. Still, that percentage, combined with the infrequency of births at some rural Maine hospitals, can make these life-saving skills very hard to maintain. Especially for those patients who need these procedures in their earliest days, ongoing training is critical in a neonatal setting.

Rural hospitals with low birth volumes may go months or years between deliveries that require resuscitation, so regular practice can make all the difference.

Minutes, even seconds, are vital when administering resuscitation.

‘HoloBaby’ equipment allows doctors to regularly practice resuscitation in life-like simulations without the need to travel for hours every month to stay sharp. They can maintain their skills while collaborating with other doctors across the state, country, and around the world. Telesimulation technology like this is responsible for ever-increasing favorable outcomes with neonatal resuscitation, particularly in rural settings. A full simulation lab, which fits in a suitcase, is available for around $30,000 – an expense most hospitals can’t easily take on.

Thanks to our community’s generosity, we can make this incredible technology available for our care team members to maintain vital resuscitation and intubation skills and provide crucial training to hospitals worldwide and across the state.