Verity Healthcare

Hello, that is Doug Smith. I’m the Director of Studying Success at XR Guru, and that is your Assistive Know-how Replace.

Hi there and welcome to your Assistive Know-how Replace, a weekly dose of knowledge that retains you updated on the most recent developments within the discipline of expertise designed to help people with disabilities and particular wants. I’m your host, Josh Anderson, with the INDATA Undertaking at Easterseals Crossroads in stunning Indianapolis, Indiana. Welcome to episode 716 of Assistive Know-how Replace. It’s scheduled to be launched on February 14th, 2025.

On at present’s episode, we’re tremendous excited to welcome Doug Smith, Director of Studying Success from XR Guru, to the present. He’s right here to inform us about all the good coaching instruments they’ve out there to assist people with disabilities in employment, studying residing expertise, and lots of different actually cool issues completed within the digital setting. We need to thank all of you for listening, and in addition thank InTRAC at indianarelay.com. They’re the great sponsor of our captions and our transcripts. When you’re in search of a transcript of at present’s present, go to eastersealstech.com. However for now, listeners, let’s go forward and get on with the present. As we speak, listeners, we’re going to immerse ourselves within the immersive experiences created by XR Guru. Director of Studying Success, Doug Smith, from XR Guru is right here to inform us all in regards to the instruments they’ve out there to help people with a myriad of studying and coaching instruments. Doug, welcome to the present.

Hey, thanks a lot. Glad to be right here.

Yeah, I’m blissful to have you ever and excited to be taught in regards to the expertise. However earlier than we do this, may you inform our listeners just a little bit about your self?

Yeah, certain. I’m Doug Smith. I’m right here in Columbus, Ohio, with XR Guru. I’m the Director of Studying Success. And we’re a world group. We simply occur to concentrate on digital actuality content material and creating content material throughout the board for workforce growth and schooling and coaching. However we’ve, the previous few years, carved out a pleasant area of interest of content material in digital actuality for the DD house and the people with the developmental and incapacity house. In order that’s an fascinating focus that we didn’t suppose we had been going to get into, however we did. Personally, it rings residence true to me. My household’s all the time been concerned with people with disabilities. My aunt and uncle truly stay in Romania. They moved there 30 years in the past to arrange group houses for people with disabilities in Romania. So all the time been part of my background as nicely.

Wow, what a fully good match. I find it irresistible when the whole lot appeared to work out like that. You get the appropriate individual in the correct of discipline and perhaps doing one thing you didn’t even suppose you’d be doing. Nicely, we’ll get into all of the issues that may actually assist people with disabilities, however simply massive image, what’s a few of the content material that XR Guru presents?

Yeah, so we truly began about 20 years in the past within the coaching house, after which when this expertise took place 10 years in the past in its present type, VR has been round eternally. I bear in mind rising up close to Lake Erie in Sandusky, Cedar Level, if that place, massive curler coasters, whatnot. They had been one of many first to undertake digital actuality, and this was 30 years in the past, and also you’d get in there and put a digital actuality headset on, you’d experience a curler coaster. It was fairly cool again then, or you could possibly simply go proper over there thirty steps away and go experience the curler coaster. However it was cool on the time. After which trying again at that, what we’ve at present is simply exceptional, simply so significantly better. The expertise’s actually nice.

So this firm, XR Guru, about 10 years in the past, began creating content material particularly for coaching and schooling as a result of that was the background of the corporate, and actually began with building and medical providers, suppose like nursing, NCLEX exams, prep for that, taking these exhausting subjects, these tough ideas, and placing them right into a type of digital hands-on setting that made it just a little extra partaking, just a little simpler for people to grasp what these ideas had been.

So fast-forward to the pandemic and the shutdown, and the whole lot that was occurring there. Folks had been calling us up saying, “Hey, what do you’ve off the shelf that we may seize at present and the subjects that we will discover with coaching and schooling and workforce?” And we stated, “Nicely,” we didn’t actually have something as a result of we had been creating content material for our personal college students, and we had been creating content material for Midwest corporations that had been personalized. And so it was actually a scenario the place we thought, “Nicely, gosh, perhaps we should always create a bunch of content material that’s off the shelf.” And we did. So we’ve obtained a thousand completely different subjects, actually 1100 completely different subjects that span from building commerce, expertise, delicate expertise is a big one, which we’ll speak just a little bit extra about right here on this session, after all. We’ve obtained profession exploration, which can be enormous within the DD house, in addition to simply overseas, and healthcare, medical helping, CNA expertise, issues like that. So a really broad spectrum within the schooling house. We’ve obtained sciences too. So lengthy reply to a brief query, however hopefully that helps.

No, it positively does. And once we get into learn how to discover out extra, I positively advocate people go and take a look at it simply because there’s a lot. I did just a little little bit of analysis for this, so I perhaps pinned down some stuff, and I used to be like, “You understand what? We’ll simply do an overarching factor,” as a result of it’s a number of info. And having come from employment earlier than this, so earlier than this, I used to be a job coach and labored with people, and generally simply getting the hands-on, the determining what may work, the with the ability to see in the actual world how these items work, it’s very exhausting to elucidate, or what even a every day duties can be. And we tried do what we may with internships, with job shadows, however that’s not potential with all companies, and it’s not all the time a great way to go. So I suppose that leads me into, let’s speak about a few of the issues which might be specifically created for people with disabilities. Describe a few of these to me.

Yeah, yeah, nice. So about three years in the past, the State of Tennessee, which is now the DDA, the Division of Disabilities and Ageing, it was people with developmental and mental disabilities. They’ve simply merged just lately, I believe. However they got here up with a pilot program for actually as leaders within the house throughout the nation, I imply, it was simply exceptional to see what Tennessee is doing down there statewide, however actually attempting to determine how they’ll present digital actuality experiences for his or her service suppliers to exit and assist people with DD who’re inquisitive about stepping into the workforce, or perhaps they’re already within the workforce however not on the appropriate path.

In order that’s actually the place we began to concentrate on the DD-specific content material with profession exploration. And I’ve obtained some actually fascinating tales about how we got here up with that. After which additionally with the delicate expertise, the employability expertise, just a few primary expertise for the DD house, hygiene, simply primary taking good care of your self, trying good once you’re going right into a job or a job interview, day-to-day duties on a job. Is it okay to seize your telephone and verify your texts from buddies or your loved ones once you obtained a buyer proper in entrance of you? What’s that type of simply acceptable habits for the workforce and getting people prepared and understanding in an actual world setting, such as you stated, making ready for a job is one factor, however seeing it, feeling it, understanding what it’s earlier than you ever get into that job is a very completely different factor.

Oh, for certain. And I’m certain for lots of parents, it has to type of deliver down a few of the worry, a few of the unknown. “Oh gosh, what if this does occur? What if this does occur?” With the ability to expertise that in a protected digital setting has to make an enormous distinction.

We actually need to set them up for fulfillment. The service suppliers we labored with to this point in Tennessee and different states, after all, we’ve heard that actual suggestions. It’s actually given folks an understanding. One of the crucial fascinating issues in regards to the profession exploration facet of it was individuals who wished to be vet techs, veterinarian technicians. They usually thought that as a result of they wished to pet puppies and kitties all day. And so if something about being a vet tech, it’s not petting puppies and kitties all day. So you possibly can have these people who they suppose they need to be a vet tech, so that they join on the profession honest or no matter it’s, and so they bounce on and so they get on boarded, they get employed even, after which two months into the job, they notice, “Oh, wait, this isn’t petting puppies and kitties all day. This isn’t what I used to be going to do.” So then perhaps they give up.

In order that’s a no-go for everyone. And in order that’s the place we attempt to take that type of visible expertise, that understanding of what the profession truly is. And it is a complete number of careers that we ended up doing for the DD house. Vet tech was considered one of them, and we took pictures and 360 movies and immersive expertise in order that you could possibly see and really feel and simply type of be there in that digital setting by sporting a digital actuality headset or on a pill or a pc and see what that job seems to be like and say, “Hey, nicely, wait. This isn’t petting puppies and kitties all day. So perhaps I don’t need to be a vet tech. Perhaps I’ll go be a baker or one thing.”

Yeah. Oh, for certain, for certain. Doug, I’m going to leap round just a little bit right here simply you type of introduced it up that this will work on some completely different units. So I suppose if I’m utilizing one of many coaching applications or one of many profession exploration applications or something from XR Guru, what all types of units is it in a position to work on?

So we push the digital actuality headset, so those that we default to are the Meta merchandise, the Quest sequence. So proper now we’re on the Quest 2, Quest 3 VR headsets. These worth factors for service suppliers, not often an enormous deal. In at present’s world, they’re about 300, $350 at Greatest Purchase or Amazon or no matter retail. However we notice some folks can’t do this, and particularly in case you’re an finish person or a household with a person with DD, then perhaps you don’t have a headset or perhaps there’s no actual cause to get a headset or perhaps there’s some visible points there. And so you possibly can entry, though this expertise is supposed to be immersive, the cool factor in regards to the expertise is that it will possibly truly reduce into issues that aren’t immersive, like tablets or the pc or perhaps a cellphone in some conditions if they’ve that. So it’s suitable amongst many, many various units.

Good. And we all the time love that in the case of accessibility. The extra you possibly can entry it, the extra accessible it may be. You stated you had some good tales, so I’m simply going to go forward and ask, as you had been creating a few of these applications, what are some good tales of simply how that each one took place?

Yeah, so we’re right here in Ohio, and we work with a number of the completely different boards in Ohio, which is ready up as a state just a little bit otherwise than most states. Tennessee, after all, is a statewide run program with service suppliers. In between Ohio and Tennessee, if your geography, is Kentucky, after all. We work with their Division of Schooling. So it’s just a bit smattering of who we work with and what we’ve been in a position to see firsthand with the completely different organizations. Tennessee was tremendous fascinating as a result of this was the place we went right down to Nashville for just a few days and we took our recording tools. So we’ve this actually state-of-the-art 8K decision Insta cam. So if Insta, you may know the Insta cam sequence. It’s a product, and this one seems to be like an alien head. It’s simply this ball with all these little video cameras all around the factor, and it has these little antennas sticking up, so it seems to be like just a little alien you.

So we did get a number of seems to be once we set that up in locations, however the entire purpose was to arrange this 8K 360 diploma video digital camera. And the very first place we did this was a companion with the State of Tennessee. They’ve, after all, trade companions out in the neighborhood, and considered one of their companions is the Nashville Sounds baseball stadium. So consider in case you’re a Main League baseball fan, you guys being the place you’re, perhaps Milwaukee Brewers isn’t your favourite workforce, however the AAA workforce for the Milwaukee Brewers is the Nashville Sounds baseball workforce. So we had been down there and it was opening week of the baseball AAA workforce there in Nashville. And so vitality was excessive, the whole lot was actually nice, and the baseball stadium itself hires a number of people with DD.

So we had a very good expertise of establishing this digital camera in the midst of the baseball stadium proper earlier than the gates had been opened for opening week. And so then we had been simply attempting to seize all of the completely different elements of the baseball stadium the place people may work, the place they may get a job even tomorrow in the event that they wished to and to showcase that. And in order that’s considered one of my favourite ones as a result of we had been in a position to take a look at the concession stands, we had been in a position to take a look at the meals prep again finish. We had been in a position to take a look at a few of the ushers and the ticket takers and the counters and all these completely different jobs that these people may get whilst fast as the following day.

And so from there, when folks began coming in, we had been asking questions on what does this do? What are you guys doing right here? It’s simply a number of interplay with the group, with the employees there at massive, and like, “Hey, yeah,” as a person with developmental disabilities, these people would come as much as us and they might say, “Yeah, this might be nice. I wanted this expertise once I was in search of a job.” And we simply obtained some actually nice concepts from the group itself and understanding what to do subsequent and learn how to format it in order that we might be greatest acquired by these customers who can be finally utilizing the content material.

Good. And I like that you just took that into consideration, making it particularly for people and involving them on what do they need they knew? How is it greatest introduced and actually tailor-made to them. In order that’s actually superior. And Doug, what in regards to the delicate expertise stuff? So the hygiene and issues like that. I suppose, what sort of planning went into that, or how did you determine which of them had been essential for people to have the ability to have these expertise with the intention to discover good jobs and be capable to hold them?

Yeah, delicate expertise is de facto fascinating as a result of at present with the AI part of issues, there’s a number of AI happening in all places, after all, lots in assistive tech, after which digital actuality isn’t any completely different. We’ve obtained AI parts that I’ll work my strategy to speak about right here in a second, however once we speak in regards to the origin of sentimental expertise, it actually did begin from the service suppliers saying, “You understand what? Once I hear from employers who wish to rent, the most important issues that come up are this, this, and this.” And people tended to be learn how to work together with folks, primary hygiene, after which simply day-to-day duties doing the job. And so how do you are taking each potential situation and each potential trade after which boil these down into consumable, easy-to-understand situations that anyone may use for ability growth?

Nicely, it wasn’t straightforward, however we ended up doing it over a interval of some months, we had been in a position to determine it out. We had a number of nice assist from material consultants and other people within the discipline, after all, and we took it, and actually, our first one was tremendous fascinating. It ended up being hand washing. And so we used the CDC’s suggestion, and that is 2022, I need to say round 2022. So nonetheless on the cusp of COVID and all people being delicate about washing arms and stuff. And so we wished to verify all people knew learn how to wash their arms.

So think about in a digital setting world the place you’re strolling round and also you’re in a rest room and also you’re being guided on learn how to wash your arms appropriately. And so this turned out to be a very, actually fascinating lesson for people to grasp how to try this appropriately based on the CDC. Really took it to a biology lecturers convention later that yr for the primary launch of it. And all these biology lecturers, biology lecturers, they’re purported to understand how to do that stuff. They usually get in there and so they’re like, “Wait a minute. Do I’ve to scrub my arms for 20 seconds? Oh, that is loopy. That is too, it’s so lengthy. What am I doing?” And I’m like, “Wait a minute. We’re at a biology instructor convention right here. What’s happening?” So simply how that’s translated, how that piece of content material has translated, not even from the DD house, however simply usually the way it’s translated into working into a number of completely different situations.

So we’ve all the fundamental expertise and the hygiene classes, after which we’ve obtained some actually cool delicate expertise so far as job interview simulators. We’ve obtained some actually cool completely different situations like skilled communication forwards and backwards. And with the arrival of AI, I’ll speak about that for a second, it actually is that this completely, I don’t even need to say customizable, as a result of AI itself is the personalized product sufficient that you’re speaking type of fluently with a digital individual forwards and backwards, and they’re speaking forwards and backwards with you, altering the way in which they’re speaking based mostly on the way you’re speaking. So taking this to a delicate expertise interview, skilled communication, all these several types of simulators with all these several types of topics has simply been a sport changer.

Oh my gosh. Yeah. And also you type of introduced up, and I’m glad you introduced it up as a result of I wished to speak about that, however yeah, simply coping with clients, coping with coworkers, all these issues. However then the truth that the AI can change. So it’s not like I’m simply determining learn how to beat the sport and get this non-playable character to do the factor I would like it to do. I truly must work together. And the truth that it will possibly speak again to me, that’s simply so completely different. I do know completely different people that we’ve labored with in not simply type of the developmental incapacity type of house, however actually so many others, these are very exhausting expertise to be taught. After which if I’ve to look an actual individual within the eye whereas I’m doing it, that’s simply much more difficult.

But when I can do it with this AI part that may sit there and really reply as an actual human being would, simply what a distinction, as a result of then I can be taught these expertise, I can hone them just a little bit, so in the actual world once I face these, I’ve obtained some backing. I’ve obtained some expertise. I’ve obtained some follow beneath my belt. In order that’s superior. I like that you just introduced that up and it’s so cool that yeah, it’s in a position to adapt type of on the fly. That’s simply completely superb. So Doug, we talked about unbiased residing, we talked about work and different stuff. What are another issues that we will do with VR with a few of the instruments from XR Guru?

Yeah, outdoors of coaching and schooling, cognitive pondering, vital pondering, we’ve obtained some puzzles for the cognitive ability constructing. After which meditation’s been enormous as nicely. Simply people who need to take a breath, perhaps they’re overwhelmed with life, perhaps they’ve obtained some selections in entrance of them that they know will overwhelm them, they’ll bounce in a VR headset, and people meditation experiences are simply there, fairly just a few on the market, some on XR Guru after all. They usually simply actually assist folks get into zone, psychological house, get some good respiratory workout routines, issues like that to only prepare for the day forward or perhaps a alternative that they’ve developing or perhaps a foul day that that they had.

After which, Doug, I did see on this as nicely that it’s potential to type of create and design personalized content material. How does that work?

Yeah, good query. So we do have some service suppliers within the DD house who’re utilizing this device. It’s referred to as the XR Design Studio. And it’s a no-code authoring device that lets you create your personal content material, primarily for coaching or prep environments. Right here, we’re going to be going into this kitchen, and right here’s the way you’re going to make your peanut butter sandwich at present. And they also type of replicate that. Once more, they’ll use a 360 video digital camera, like a GoPro. You will get these for 100, 150 bucks lately. So it’s not tough to get that. Or we’ve truly an AI generator contained in the device itself. So you could possibly say, “Create a kitchen,” and kind that in. And the immediate comes up the place you’ve a 360 diploma video that AI has created on our device that’s a kitchen. After which you could possibly take that kitchen and begin to replicate the completely different steps or the completely different actions that it’s essential to absorb that kitchen to create a peanut butter sandwich, for instance. Meal prep’s a giant one so I’m simply going to remain on that for a minute.

Or you could possibly have 3D fashions, not simply 360 movies, however 3D fashions that you could possibly generate from our personal device, or there are many inventory picture sorts of internet sites on the market that you could possibly pull in any 3D mannequin that you really want. So let’s say you had a, I don’t know, fridge mannequin or one thing. You wished to place that in there, after which you could possibly establish on the fridge which one’s the freezer half, which one’s the fridge half, make certain it’s closed. And you could possibly simply put all kinds of various type of lesson-type indicators and processes and issues like that on the device that then can spit out into the digital actuality headset or onto the pc or pill so folks can see that as an evaluation, or a coaching device, or a train-the-trainer device even for service suppliers, and even simply type of an unbiased residing guidelines. That’s what we’ve seen a few of that getting used for truly.

That’s tremendous cool. And yeah, simply open it up much more accessibility. Nicely, Doug, all these instruments are superb, superb issues. I obtained to ask, what’s on the horizon? Is there one thing you guys are engaged on you’re enthusiastic about or simply honing these and making them even higher?

Yeah, I imply, with AI, clearly issues are shifting so quick, we don’t know precisely, however within the forecast for this yr, it’s going to be an unbiased residing home. And once more, this will probably be extra for service suppliers to type of verify in with households to see if this particular person’s able to have some unbiased residing and it will type of assess them in actual time and provides them some tips on what to look out for. So not fairly there but with the event, however actually enthusiastic about it the place you could possibly bounce in, stroll round a home, have 10 to twenty completely different actions that you must critically suppose via, if one thing goes unsuitable with buttons beeping, perhaps locking the entrance door, no matter these items are, a few of the issues that we’ve talked about through the years, simply to type of give it as an early evaluation device for service suppliers and households to grasp if that particular person’s able to have some unbiased residing.

Oh, that’s superior. That’s superior. That’ll be an important, useful gizmo for people. Doug, if our listeners need to discover out extra about XR Guru and I like to recommend they do go a minimum of discover all of the actually cool stuff that’s type of there, what’s a great way for them to try this?

Yeah, go to xrguru.com. That’s xrguru.com, XRGuru. I’d recommend first, beginning trying on the Market, which is our assortment of content material with 1100 completely different items of content material there. Test that out. At any time, submit the shape. That type will go to me and my workforce. I’m all the time blissful to attach with people and present them on a name, like a Groups name or one thing, in regards to the content material. Discuss via how they could be capable to use that, whether or not they’re a service supplier or a household or an finish person. Doesn’t matter to me. I’m all the time blissful to take 15, 20, half-hour to speak via and present you some use circumstances and see if it would make sense. If people on the market do even have headsets, Quest headsets, I’d be blissful to ship them entry to a few of our VR content material as nicely, only for listening to the present.

Superior. Superior. Superior. Nicely, we’ll put a hyperlink down within the present notes so that folk can simply recover from there. Doug, thanks a lot for approaching, for telling us the good issues about XR Guru. I all the time love when one thing’s made for a function after which sees one other want and is ready to type of bounce into that house and use these expertise. And I really feel like that is only a useful gizmo for, yeah, such as you stated, the job expertise, but in addition simply unbiased residing and serving to folks. Actually, simply these circumstances which might be going to come back up, be capable to actually hone these expertise in a very protected setting, it’s only a useful gizmo. And thanks a lot. Very superior. Thanks for approaching.

Do you’ve a query about assistive expertise? Do you’ve a suggestion for somebody we should always interview on Assistive Know-how Replace? In that case, name our listener line at 317-721-7124. Ship us an e mail at tech@eastersealscrossroads.org, or shoot us a notice on Twitter, @InDATAproject. Our captions and transcripts for the present are sponsored by the Indiana Phone Relay Entry Company, or InTRAC. You will discover out extra about InTRAC at relayindiana.com. A particular because of Nikol Prieto for scheduling our superb visitors and making a large number of my schedule. As we speak’s present was produced, edited, hosted, and fraught over by yours actually. The opinions expressed by our visitors are their very own and should or might not replicate these of the INDATA Undertaking, Easterseals Crossroads, our supporting companions, or this host. This was your Assistive Know-how Replace. I’m Josh Anderson with the INDATA Undertaking at Easterseals Crossroads in stunning Indianapolis, Indiana. We sit up for seeing you subsequent time. Bye-bye.