ICCER Webinar

Serious Games: Vibrant Minds & Virtual Gym 

ICCER is pleased to present a webinar featuring two innovative projects from the University of Alberta. Dr. Adriana Rios Rincon will present her work, Vibrant Minds, and Victor Fernandez will share information on Virtual Gym. 

About the webinar: Computer games are increasingly used as a tool for studying cognitive skills and aging. A team at the University of Alberta developed a set of games that can be played on tablets. Usability and clinical studies have been conducted that allowed the researchers to establish that the games are (a) easy-to-use and engaging for older adults with and without dementia; and (b) older adults with dementia can become better on their cognitive skills at playing them. 

Virtual Gym is an exercise platform designed to aid older adults in their personalized exercise routines. It provides a personalized gameplay configuration and can be set-up within various characteristics such as speed, postures, interactions, rhythm, and more. The platform's purpose is to extend the capabilities of health professionals to prescribe and monitor the clients' exercise routines. So far, Virtual Gym has an essential catalogue of gameplays with general exercise prescriptions. 

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Adriana Rios Rincon is an assistant professor of the Department of Occupational Therapy, University of Alberta. She is an AGE-WELL network investigator. Her current research is devoted to investigating the use of assistive technologies to assess and promote cognitive skills and engagement in play in individuals with motor and cognitive impairment including those living with dementia. She is also interested in exploring the use of information and communication technologies and artificial intelligence to support decisions about transitions across the continuum of care in older adults and individuals with disabilities.

Victor Fernandez is a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Alberta and holds a PhD in Computer Science. Victor has five years of experience developing serious games for rehabilitation and exercise and is a funder and entrepreneur of Virtual Gym. 

 

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Please note: This webinar is free for ICCER member organizations*, associate members, as well as individual members. The cost is $15/site for non-members to attend. See the list of members below!  

*ICCER member organizations: Bethany Care Society, CapitalCare, Carewest, College of Licensed Practical Nurses of Alberta (staff only), Excel Society, Good Samaritan Society, Keyano College, Lifestyle Options, NorQuest College, Shepherd's Care Foundation, Sherwood Care, Silvera for Seniors, St. Michael's Health Group, University of Alberta, Wing Kei

**Associate ICCER members: BioAlberta, Berry Architecture, Dignity Memorial, Rexall; Note: Associate members are entitled to a maximum of 5 free webinar registrations. Additional registrations require payment.