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The SHIFA Project
Funded by Alliance Healthcare Foundation’s i2 Innovation Award, the SHIFA (Somali Health Initiative for Access) Project represents an innovative virtual reality (VR) approach to image-based learning with the goal of increasing pediatric vaccination rates among East African refugee populations. The VR experience is in alignment with specific cultural and religious norms and it responds to the particular needs of community caregivers and community healthcare providers. It is being created following a systematic, evidence-based methodology involving intimate community engagement, and using the latest research results relating to the benefits of and the hesitancy toward vaccination. Its design is also informed by studies of the behavior and concerns of the communities that were involved in the recent measles outbreaks in the US and in other parts of the world.
This unique audio-visually immersive educational experience can be enjoyed on mobile devices or on virtual reality headsets. Visual learning has previously proven to be effective in healthcare, and virtual reality experiences have been shown to increase retention and recall of educational information. The experience is being created in collaboration with a content creation team using novel, customized storification which is being developed using a community-based participatory approach. The storification thus includes cultural and religious considerations and leverages these factors to improve pediatric health, and to deliver virtual reality-based education that is effective, drives impact, and is accepted by the community-at-large.
Our methodology is iterative and employs design thinking principles, community engagement and data acquisition, and is therefore extendable to other refugee communities. In doing so, we will create a new platform for interactive health education that is centered upon the specific needs of underserved communities leading to more effective and efficient healthcare delivery.
Our vision for increasing impact is to transition to a social enterprise model by generating additional revenue independent of grant funding. This will allow us to expand the reach of this project and to empower East African and other underserved communities to make evidence-based healthcare decisions and improve community health outcomes.
The SHIFA VR experience is now available in English and Somali. You can view this experience on a smart phone, tablet, computer, or using virtual reality goggles.
Click here to view the experience in English
Click here to view the experience in Somali
We encourage you to fill out this survey after viewing the VR experience.
For more information on the SHIFA project, see the Alliance Healthcare Foundation Press Release or email ahmed@sfssd.org.