Holobox

2024: System Implementation at Texas Clinic

In May 2024, the American Crescent Regional Hospital in Lancaster (Texas) introduced the Holobox telemedicine system developed by the Dutch company Holoconnects. Thanks to this solution, hologram doctors can conduct dialogue with patients.

Holobox is a device in the form of a rectangular parallelepiped approximately 210 cm high and weighing about 180 kg. Inside this "box," a high-quality 3D image of a healthcare professional who is in a completely different place is formed in real time. As a result, the patient has a feeling that the doctor is next to him. In fact, the doctor, located many kilometers from the place of reception of the visitor, looks at video cameras and displays.

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Holoconnects

The system allows the patient and doctor to perform telemedicine appointments, which is more like a face-to-face conversation. As of mid-2024, the service is used mainly for pre- and postoperative visits. In the future, Crescent Regional Hospital management intends to expand the range of services based on Holobox: in particular, it is planned to organize traditional techniques. It is assumed that the use of holograms will improve the quality of remote care for patients.

The Holobox platform costs approximately $42,000, and annual support costs $1,900. According to Raji Kumar, managing partner and CEO of Crescent Regional Hospital, the introduction of the novelty expands the possibilities of telemedicine. Thanks to the large screen and complex camera system, the doctor can see the whole body of the patient, which is useful when assessing characteristics such as gait or range of movement. The complex can be especially useful, for example, in physiotherapy.^[1]

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