Radiological personnel in six European hospitals will soon be receiving help from Mickey Mouse, Winnie the Pooh and Aladdin.

 

Healthcare technology company Philips has worked with Walt Disney to develop animations with well-known cartoon characters from the entertainment group for the hospitals. The goal is to keep children undergoing an MRI scan calm as they enter the scanner tube.

The scanning procedure is often no fun for the youngest patients. “Undergoing an MRI scan can be very difficult, especially for children.

You have to stay still for a long time, and while you are in the scanner there is also a lot of noise and noise, which can be intimidating, ”says Werner Satter, general manager of the Philips Healthcare Experience Solutions division.

With a trial in the participating hospitals, Philips now wants to find out whether animations of, for example, the Little Mermaid or the fish Nemo can alleviate anxiety in young patients.

These short films are played with video projections and special lighting on the walls of the room where the scanner is located. If this works, the Disney characters will also make healthcare workers easier, Philips expects.