2015. It has been a few years since Pierre Gadea and Romain Streichemberger are entrepreneurs. Their thing: the serious game. They design virtual universes used in real estate. To better visualize a property for example. A job that does not fulfill them as much as they would like. ” There was little meaning in this activity », explains Roman Streichemberger. The impression of putting technology at the service of superfluous needs. Until a psychiatrist and researcher, passionate about video games, asks them.
” Doctor Malbos, who works for Professor Lançon’s service at the AP-HM, explained to us that to treat phobias, patients were exposed to their fears in vivo, which was not always easy to implement. He told us that instead, we could use these therapies in virtuo and that it could be effective. And he asked us to design universes to allow this “.
IThis is the meaning they were looking for. Digital at the service of care. Especially since the first results are very encouraging. ” We have found a significant decrease in anxiety in patients treated with virtual reality “.
A machine to generate emotions
At the start, the two men have only meager capital. 10,000 euro. No computers adapted to the development of virtual universes in 3D, because these are still very expensive. ” We have started working on smartphone “.
Then, as demand increases at the same time as the equipment put on the market, the company equips itself better. She grows up. ” In the beginning, we went to a lot of city doctors “. Add to ityouent over time large groups like Corian. ” We we now work with 400 healthcare establishments “. Everywhere in France. But also internationally – Europe, UNITED STATES where the company achieves 12% of its turnover, which amounts to a total of 1.4 million euros.
Customers to whom the company offers more than 170 different virtual worlds. Among the demands emerging in recent years: environments to face the fear of contamination following covid-19.
And the company tries to enrich its tools by relying on the most recent innovations. ” What we offer is a machine to generate emotions “. This implies bringing the virtual experience as close as possible to reality, via the stimulation of more senses or thanks to technologies such as augmented reality, thanks to which virtual elements are superimposed on reality. ” Our customers receive a lot of customers who are afraid of insects. Augmented reality allows them to see an insect that comes closer and closer to a hand that is actually theirs. It’s much more impactful “.
A wide range of applications
Augmented reality is also of interest in physiotherapy. ” Physical rehabilitation can be very laborious and boring. So that the patient does not have the impression of doing his exercises in a vacuum, we can gamify them. By raising his arms, for example, he is offered to catch virtual objects “.
Because the field of action of C2Care goes beyond psychiatry. ” Virtual reality can help with relaxation in the context of somewhat intrusive surgical procedures. We also have subjects that are particularly close to our hearts, such as child palliative care. These children know that they only have a few weeks left to live, but they can no longer go out. Virtual reality can allow them to experience a maximum of things, to travel “.
And in the case of autism spectrum disorders, virtual reality can allow patients to be more trained in communication, and to better manage their difficulties in this area. This shows the infinite potential of virtual reality therapies.
Diversification of outlets
ATwhen pFor the latter to benefit more and more people, C2Care has, over time,diversify its distribution channels.
In addition to health professionals who account for 75% of its turnover, C2Care responds to various projects, in health but also sometimes in human resources.
” We also have a second gateway: BtoC. We had such great demand from patients that we started giving them access to our virtual environments and renting them headsets. “. And within the company’s team of 15 employees, three psychologists are authorized to take care of these patients. ” Since they have the equipment at home, they can repeat between two sessions and the therapy is much faster. “. It takes about four months, compared to six with a therapist. Especially since the latter are very often overwhelmed.
Initiated at the beginning of summer 2022, this offer has already supported 800 patients. “ And we have an active queue of 250 people “.
And to go further, the company offers a third approach. ” We go through companies to take care of their suffering employees. For example, we work with a large banking group which asked us to support twenty-five of its employees. We are in discussion with other companies to develop this “. And with “ a quarter of employees subject to stress and various psychological sufferings », the potential is colossal.
