The Somatic Practice and Chronic Pain Network has a series of blog items called “Meet our Board” where we introduce members of the Board. The Network is keen to build a space that is respectful, safe, inclusive and active.
For the 6th in the series, we have Dr. Michael Loizou, Associate Professor in Digital Health at the Centre for Health Technology, University of Plymouth and also Visiting Professor, Research Institute of Health & Wellbeing, Coventry University.
Michael has over 20 years of experience in both academia and industry, working with the health sector including the NHS. He has experience and leads projects in the areas of human machine interaction, digital healthcare, Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR), serious games / gamification, and using mobile technologies for healthcare and wellbeing.
Some of his work includes:
BRIDGING: PI for the 3-year NIHR funded project that started in June 2023. BRIDGING aims to help autistic adults to secure, sustain and thrive in employment through the development of the BRIDGING programme, a package that includes immersive Virtual Reality (VR) employment scenarios co-designed with autistic adults. This will include putting the employers in the shoes of autistic people so that they can realise firsthand how important reasonable adjustments in the workplace are.
Co-Development and Testing of a Digital App to Support Occupational Therapists in Making Discharge Decisions: Michael is Co-I for this NIHR funded project, starting April 2024, that aims to enhance an existing capability for our current tool that aids stroke survivors in rehabilitation through digital therapy using AR games. Building upon research we conducted at University College London, we have developed a set of eight tasks that utilise AR to simulate real-life conditions, thereby assisting occupational therapists in monitoring patients’ progress. We will further explore how our app can support occupational therapists to make discharge decisions more efficiently in the future and reduce the chances of readmissions.
Development of a prototype virtual reality (VR)-based intervention for the management of hemiplegic shoulder pain (HSP) in people with stroke: As part of his work with stroke survivors, which currently also includes preparing an EPSRC application on the timely prediction and prevention of stroke, Michael also supervises a fully funded PhD student that researches the benefits of VR for managing hemiplegic shoulder pain in people with stroke.
Finn’s Fish: Michael was PI for this Arts Council England funded project which used novel technologies such as ultrasound haptics and Xtended reality for supporting a deaf-blind artist, John Finn, to continue producing groundbreaking art.
Digital Participative Visual Arts Intervention for People with Dementia: Michael was also PI for this City of Culture funded project that provided an opportunity for collaboration and co-creation between academics, practitioners, museums, and the public, to evaluate how to adapt a digital participative visual arts intervention for older people with dementia.
Michael’s hopes for the Network are to help integrate novel technologies, including Virtual and Augmented reality, biosensors, and Artificial Intelligence in co-creative processes for people with chronic pain.
And at the time of writing this blog entry, Michael is reading literature on the prediction and early diagnosis in the community for various conditions, including mental health, dementia, stroke, and cardiac disease.
Images from https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/staff/michael-loizou and https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/research/centre-for-health-technology
