3D holograms of human anatomy as a learning tool for medical students

Two doctors in training from the University St. George of London have shown in a rehearsal before medical students their innovative vision of the future of teaching with 3D holographic projection as a learning tool.

Beyond the usual presentations in meetings and conferences or even the use of digital whiteboards in classrooms, two doctors in training from the London University of St. George have carried out an innovative test with medical students using 3D holographic projection, no need for glasses, as a training and care tool.

In this essay, named by its creators Hamlet (holography assisted medical teaching and e-tutoring), Kapil Sugand and Pedro Campos have given a seminar to medical students and doctors in training with an animation with 3D holograms of the human renal system.

During the seminar, kidney function was shown, in this case with a 3D hologram of 13 meters high, and other parts of human anatomy, including a huge skull.

As Kapil Sugand explains, from the Hamlet team, “The average attention span is up to thirty minutes in a standard one-hour conference.”. We are using educational theory to build dynamic animations and simplify complex concepts, "stimulate and prolong the capacity for attention applied to medical education.".

As part of the test, The same conference was later held with traditional methods of presentation and images, and attendees were asked to evaluate the information provided in the first and subsequent medicine conference, to determine whether or not the technology helped them understand the topic analyzed.

The 3D holograms in this conference were created using the technique called “Pepper’s ghost.”, with three standard LCD projectors to generate three-dimensional vision, which is combined with lighting to give the sensation that objects and images are floating in the air.

The development of Hamlet has had the collaboration of MSk Lab at Imperial College London, who has provided the funds to create the animations, as well as assistance with research methodology.

The results of this trial have been very positive, with a high rating in the understanding of complex concepts. Both Sugand and Campos have shown their satisfaction for a system that is much less expensive than 3D technology., “which improves training in a more effective way to have better doctors”.

The Hamlet team is also in talks for this, still rehearsal, can become a useful learning tool in other areas related to medicine, such as medical assistance to interact with patients and better understand their pathology, as well as to promote health training in society.

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