A Game-Based Training Approach to Enhance Human Hand Motor Learning and Control Abilities

This work presents a serious game designed to improve the performance in users' control abilities applied to pressure sensitivity. In particular, the aim of this work is part of a larger goal of providing medical students with further opportunities of palpation experiences and assistance as part of their education. Typically medical students are limited by the number of volunteers they can practice on and the amount of time they can interact with more experienced practitioners to further develop fundamental palpation skills. Correct palpation skills are crucial as they inform the diagnosis in a large number of healthcare fields and a skill required by most healthcare professionals. The ability to be able to enhance the educational process of healthcare professionals' palpation skills could lead to a more holistic student experience. This work presents a serious game in which one aspect of palpation, hand control ability through the correct application of pressure to a patient, is the target for user improvement. A serious game modelled on the infinite runner genre was designed to be controlled via an input device developed in-house with off-the-shelf components that translates real-world pressure to in-game movement. The game was tested in a participant trial involving a game-playing group (n = 15) and a control group (n = 15) and a significant improvement in a blind-folded pressure test was observed for the game-playing group. User feedback via a questionnaire also showed a positive response of the game.