CLUNL

Com@Rehab – Communication for interactive rehabilitation in virtual reality

Identification

• Project Identification: Com@Rehab – Communication for interactive rehabilitation in virtual reality
• Coordination: Micaela Fonseca (NOVA FCT)
• Responsible at CLUNL: Rute Costa (Lexicology, Lexicography and Terminology group)
• Start date: Sep. 2020
• Funding Entity: Santander/NOVA Collaborative Research Award 2019-2020

Description

The Com@Rehab project develops the Digital Communication Module (MCD Rehab) of VR4Pandemic which currently includes three components: i) a glove with haptic feedback and biosensors, ii) a Virtual Reality (VR) game with levels of difficulty and iii) a platform that analyses the physiological parameters in real-time. The purpose of the project is to contribute to the rehabilitation of post-COVID patients in hospitals and/or home environments. The researchers intend to focus on the development of communicative skills of the various agents involved while enhancing technological literacy and interactivity with technology, thereby helping to improve human-human and human-machine interaction. By developing and optimizing a rehabilitation program, based on a VR system customized according to the patient’s clinical needs, the team aims to support the management of therapeutic activities directed to post-COVID patients by making it more effective. This is a multidisciplinary project in partnership with the collaborative laboratory Value for Health CoLAB, the HEI_Lab research center, as well as with the Centro de Medicina e Reabilitação de Alcoitão.

NOVA CLUNL is participating in Com@Rehab by applying its competencies in Health Literacy in the Linguistic and Terminological components of the project, thus, improving communication between technology and patients.

Team

Micaela Fonseca (investigadora responsável, NOVA FCT)
Cláudia Quaresma (NOVA FCT)
Rute Costa (NOVA FCSH, CLUNL)
Sara Carvalho (CLUNL)
Ana Rita Londral (NOVA Medical School)
Raquel Silva (CLUNL, VoH.CoLAB)
Carolina Silva (NOVA FCT, CLUNL)
Miguel Fernández (U.Lusófona, CLUNL)

Partners

Value for Health CoLAB
HEI_Lab
Centro de Medicina e Reabilitação de Alcoitão

 

Testimony

Being part of a project as relevant as Com@Rehab and being surrounded by a multidisciplinary team full of professionals is a unique opportunity for any student and an asset I’ll take with me into the future. During these months, in addition to learning about my field of studies, I’ve learned a lot about other different fields that may not seem related at first glance. The best thing I take from this experience is the interdisciplinary knowledge and vision that are only possible from an extracurricular standpoint.

(Carolina Silva, Research Grant Holder between March and November, 2021)