Archives

The MRI team worked alongside the child life specialists of Shands to design a smaller scale MRI machine that will replicate the sounds and bed movements of an MRI machine. The idea behind having the smaller MRI machine is for the children of Shands to experience the sounds and movements before they go into a real MRI machine. MRI machines can be daunting to children with all the different sounds and movements, the goal of this project was to alleviate the stress and fear they may have.

The Milk Bank team created a combination web app to help optimize donor milk combinations for milk banks. The app is currently going through testing at the milk bank. In the future, it may be made compatible with mobile devices. A link to the web app can be found here.

​

​

​

The Sinus Venosus Atrial Septal Defect Model consists of a 3D-printed model of a heart defect that is developed from a real patient’s CT scan. This model will be used by surgical residents to practice on before they perform the patient’s actual surgery.

The Complex Congential Heart Disease Model project consists of a 3D-printed model of a heart defect that is developed from a real patient’s CT scan. This model will be used by surgical residents to practice on before they perform the patient’s actual surgery.

This application serves as the basis of a research project in distraction-based therapy within Shands Hospital. The team has published, playtested, and distributed the application through the Oculus Quest App Lab. This application is primarily designed to be a highly immersive game that uses the unique aspects of virtual reality while also taking into consideration design constraints inherently imposed by the use-case situation: a child will primarily be using this before and during routine medical procedures, limited in motion in their hospital bed. Limited FOV, simple and intuitive controls, fluid motion, calming music, and immersive environments are all crucial to keeping the child comfortable. A link to the SututingVR website can be found here.

 Inspired by the Shape-O-Ball toy, the Shape-O-Heart toy project incorporates two halves of a heart, the red half representing unhealthy foods and the blue half representing healthy foods. It will be used by the pediatric patients at Shands with the intention of teaching them about foods that can both promote and weaken heart health. This will educate them on developing healthy eating habits and the importance of a balanced diet while also assisting them in improving their fine motor skills. 

​

​

​

Hypoplastic Syndrome Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS) is a congenital heart defect due to the left side of the heart being underdeveloped. The HLHS model is an educational tool that will help children learn about the three surgeries involved in this process, the Norwood procedure, Glenn operation, and Fontan procedure. It is also a playing tool in which children can see the blood traveling through the heart and how each of the three surgeries tie into one another. Breaking apart the educational tool into three categories makes the information easier to understand and less overwhelming for children.

This project was an adaptation of the common “Melissa & Doug'' children's toy. The toy models blood flow through the heart and lungs and it will be used to demonstrate to children how unoxygenated blood is converted to oxygenated blood.

​

​

​

​

​

The Lego Learning Model is a learning kit for patients to assemble a mini Lego Berlin heart. It includes easy-to-follow instructions for the pediatric patients so that they are able to build it themselves. Through doing this, these patients are able to learn more about the Berlin heart and its various subfunctions.

The Berlin Heart Team created a mini functioning Berlin Heart model that has a pumping mechanism. It's goal was to show pediatric patients who are suffering from heart failure how a Berlin Heart works and to familiarize them with the insertion procedure before they go through it. 

​

​

​

​

​

"B is for Brogan: A Story about the Berlin Heart" is a children's book that was created in partnership with Dream Team Engineering's Berlin Heart Team. A link to the book can be found by clicking here.​

​

​