Published by Kirby Winn on Wednesday, October 18, 2023 in News Releases ImpactLife is beginning to offer Mixed Reality headsets to help recruit new donors, ease anxiety, and enhance the blood donation experience. The Mixed Reality experience is meant to help those who may be apprehensive about giving, providing a calming distraction and a fun way to participate. The system uses the Microsoft HoloLens 2, a self-contained holographic computer that enables a hands-free interaction with 3D digital objects (see photo, below). A blood donor using the Microsoft HoloLens 2 at a mobile blood drive. The interactive software was developed in a partnership between Blood Centers of America and Abbott, a healthcare technology company serving the blood industry. Before starting, blood donors are offered a brief demonstration of the headsets and shown how to engage the software in the mixed reality world. The donor then puts on a lightweight mixed-reality headset. While they experience the digital world, the donor is always fully aware of their surroundings, and the collection specialist drawing the donation can interact with the donor throughout their donation. To learn more about development of Mixed Reality for the blood industry, see Taking Blood Donation to a New Dimension of Reality (Abbott news release). See a video demonstration of the user experience, below: