How is Travelers Insurance Using Virtual Reality ( VR ) to Help Injured Employees?

Travelers Insurance company is collaborating with Samsung, Cedars-Sinai, appliedVR and Bayer to implement virtual reality (VR) technology as a supplement to pain management for injured employees. Cedars-Sinai will be conducting a clinical trial giving workers who have suffered orthopedic injuries an opportunity to use what they call the digital pain reduction kit. This trial will be conducted over 16 months and will include between 90 to 140 participants from ages 18 to 65, with the end goal being to improve outcomes for injured workers.

Travelers also hopes to use this technology to combat the growing opioid crisis. “Identifying new, non-pharmacologic alternatives for pain management can help an injured employee avoid chronic pain, lower the chances that they will develop a dangerous opioid addiction and reduce medical costs,” said Dr. Melissa Burke, National Pharmacy Director at Travelers. Dr. Spiegel of Cedars-Sinai also spoke on the current severity of opioid use, stating “The opioid crisis doesn’t just cost money, it also costs lives.”

“New #VirtualReality Pain Management Study Unites All Aspects of Care”: @CDW_Healthcare covers our new digital pain reduction study in partnership with @SamsungHealth @Travelers Insurance, @Bayer, @AppliedVRhealth & @CedarsSinai. Article here: https://t.co/A3URzQQ27E #HealthTech

— Brennan Spiegel, MD (@BrennanSpiegel) April 6, 2018

Consisting of a Samsung VR headset powered by Oculus, a fitness band, appliedVR biosensors linked to pain management content, and an Aleve electrical stimulation kit designed for aching muscle pain provided by Bayer, this pain management kit contains effective and high caliber technology. The kit will also measure the day-to-day status and productivity of participants, as well as their pain medication use.

Travelers has been integrating innovative forms of support for injured employees for several years, the first of which being their ConciergeClaim Nurse program implemented in 2015. This program was designed to facilitate healthcare access for injured employees and provide personal Travelers nurse assistance through the workers compensation process. In 2016, Travelers created the Early Severity Predictor model that can determine the likelihood of injured employees developing chronic pain, allowing them to avoid this during recovery and reduce opioid and painkiller consumption. MyTravelers for Injured Employees, the most recent service created by Travelers, is a “new digital self-service capability that streamlines the workers compensation claim process.”

Travelers is optimistic about potential benefits from the digital pain reduction kit. In their press release published earlier this year, Burke said, “We are grateful for this partnership and look forward to seeing the results that Dr. Brennan Spiegel and the Cedars-Sinai team uncover using the latest technology from appliedVR, Bayer and Samsung.”

Sources: Travelers, InsuranceBusinessMag