Can Virtual Worlds Provide Support to Military Amputees? 

DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Virtual worlds can provide military amputees with an opportunity to enhance their overall quality of life, expedite their reintegration into society, and improve their physical and mental wellness. ADL Company Inc. (ADL) and Virtual Ability, Inc. (VAI) announced today the start of a project to establish best practices and protocols for the provision of on-line peer-to-peer support services to this community, with funding from the Telemedicine and Advanced Technology Research Center (TATRC) of the US Army Medical Research and Materiel Command (USAMRMC).

“Our mandate is to explore new technology and how it can support service personnel. This is an exciting project for TATRC because it will let us define what we see as a potentially effective way to provide another form of support to military amputees”

“For individuals with disabilities, virtual worlds are a powerful way to connect with others, to access peer support, and to participate in activities that might not otherwise be possible,” said Alice Krueger, President of Virtual Ability, Inc., a not-for-profit corporation. “This project will establish the best way to adopt this technology for the unique needs of the military amputee community.”

The Amputee Virtual Environment Support Space (AVESS) project will research the peer support needs of the military amputee community and establish protocols and prototypes for addressing those needs in a virtual environment. AVESS will be developed by ADL and VAI, who are partners in the project.

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Key Words:  Amputees, Support, Military, Virtual Worlds