Didn't think the video game and medical fields had anything to do with each other? Think again - plans have been announced today regarding the Games For Health Project's fourth annual conference. Beginning May 8 to 9, 2008 (May 7 for pre-conference events), the event will take place at the Baltimore Convention Center in Baltimore, Maryland. If you're keen on going though, be warned, tickets are pricey - $295.00.
The project is produced by The Serious Games Initiative (you can tell it's serious when even the 'the' is capitalized), a Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars effort, which "applies cutting edge games and game technologies to a range of public and private policy, leadership, and management issues." So you see, it's all quite connected. In fact, Games for Change and a Japan chapter of Serious Games is also run under this umbrella.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Pioneer Portfolio is the lead conference sponsor and is behind the project fully. Chinwe Onyekere, RWJF program officer, explained in an interview with Games Press why it's important:
“This conference provides a forum for collaborations to emerge between the video game industry and the health and health care industry. Through these exchanges, we hope attendees will continue to explore how the power of video games can help to solve complex health challenges.”In its history, the project has brought researchers, medical professionals, and game developers together to share their knowledge on how games and game technology can impact health care and policy. The initiative's main interests are detailed on the website:
Can games improve the provision, and quality, of healthcare?What existing and emerging game technologies (such as multi-user, virtual environments) might be particularly useful when applied to healthcare issues?How can we expand the application of computer-based game technologies to face key challenges in the healthcare sector?How do we identify and proactively deal with any social, ethical, and/or legal issues that might arise through the application of game-based tools to healthcare issues?If you're still having trouble picturing what will happen at the conference, some of the panels will include and cover "Pos or Not : Destroying a stigma about AIDS with a game", "Vyro Games (mobile biofeedback sensor games)", game addiction, how to "Maximise Energy Expenditure" through games, and let's not forget gaming as therapy, which will be touched on. Detailed descriptions of the events can be found through the website.
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