A VR service to train healthcare professionals is now being rolled out across the country. The service is the very first to be developed through Demand Acceleration, a completely new procurement methodology.
By testing a new procurement methodology, Karlstad Municipality wanted to create a better solution for training healthcare personnel in handling challenging situations. The aim was to increase understanding of customers with cognitive impairment, a collective diagnosis that includes dementia.
Initially, seven companies were procured to participate in the innovation process. In the various phases of the Demand Acceleration methodology, the companies then iterated with the care and social care unit in Karlstad Municipality. Finally, the solution deemed to have the greatest potential to solve the task was chosen, with Virotea becoming the company that received the development contract.
All procured companies contribute insights
In the process, good ideas from all the companies that were procured could be used, but where Virotea still has full ownership of the final service that has been developed. The new VR tool has been available since the turn of the year for education in Karlstad Municipality.
- This way of training leads to deep learning, you gain both an understanding of why certain situations can arise and how they can be experienced by a person with cognitive impairment. It also provides knowledge on how to best avoid such situations, says Sonja Mirkovic, assistant nurse at the care and social care unit in Karlstad Municipality.
Watch the video to get a deeper insight into the work of creating the VR service through the new procurement methodology.
An important principle for the services procured according to the Demand Accelerator methodology is that they must be scalable and interesting for a larger target group in the public sector. It benefits both the first customer, who does not have to bear the entire cost, as well as the developing company - which gets greater business potential and a service that is viable over time.
Services can be spread within the public sector
Since Karlstad's procurement was the very first according to the Demand Accelerator methodology, it will also be a test of how these principles work in practice. So far, the results look very promising, where the service "Virotea ED” is now spreading to more and more municipalities.
- We started sales just before Christmas, and we already have three other municipalities that have bought the service. In addition, we have started test periods in seven other municipalities and many other stakeholders are listening, says Ivan Perlesi, CEO of Virotea.
Companies see great benefit from the collaboration
He is positively surprised by how the Demand Acceleration methodology and the collaboration with Karlstad Municipality have both influenced the development of the service and the interest among other customers in the public sector.
- I have worked within LSS and knew that we had a valuable tool, but I did not really know how many other municipalities shared Karlstad's challenge regarding skills development. Karlstad has really helped to pave the way for the service, partly through the interest in the new methodology but perhaps above all as a committed reference customer.
The Demand Accelerator methodology is designed in the DigitalWell Arena and combines scalable innovation procurement with incubation.
