Google Glass-wearing surgeon excited by Apple Vision Pro for healthcare

The Apple Vision Pro is shipping on February 2, and potential users are awaiting the opportunity to try out the mixed-reality headset for themselves. In one case, it could end up helping to save lives.

In a Sunday post to X, Dr Rafael Grossmann discussed the possibility of using the Apple Vision Pro in healthcare. Grossmann is known as the first surgeon to introduce Google Glass to the operating room in 2013, with a deep interest in the use of new technologies in medical fields, including working as a robotic surgeon.

Grossmann previously discussed the possibilities of Apple Vision Pro in June 2023, suggesting it could give" superpowers" to doctors by supplying data without needing them to look at a nearby display.

In his latest comments, Grossmann says the Apple Vision Pro marks a "big step in spatial computing," and that he's weeks away from "finally having mixed reality as an applicable technology in the healthcare system."

The Apple Vision Pro is seen as a way to optimize and streamline many areas of healthcare, with the possibilities being "exponential."

The suggestions include tapping into the power of AI, Large Language Models, and Large Action Models, as well as speech and image recognition to handle tasks associated with Electronic Health Record documentation. This would remove a "burden posed" to nurses and physicians.

The surgeon also says it could "improve communication and connectivity" between providers and patients and relatives, with a view to "better explain, improving empathy, and fostering compassion." Live-streaming from the view of the user could help the medical industry teach others, it's also proposed.

More tech in the operating theater

Referring back to his use of Google Glass, Grossmann calls it "a simple and intuitive idea, that nevertheless set the stage for the use of head-mounted displays and smart glasses inside the surgical theater."

For Grossmann, the use of technology is all about improving the job, solving problems faced by doctors and nurses every day, and administrative issues that "contribute to burnout and mental-health illness in our profession."

On the Apple Vision Pro specifically, Grossman is excited. "I trust that Apple's commitment to exquisite design, quality, and ergonomics will bring us closer to a better, more connected future, one where the power of extended reality becomes our ally to heal and provide care."

The surgeon's comments follow a few days after a transcript of an internal Apple video leaked, featuring executives Mike Rockwell and Alan Dye talking about the Apple Vision Pro's development.

"Oftentimes, surgeons struggle to look at displays during procedures, where information is spread out," Rockwell said. "Apple Vision Pro could bring all of that together and hopefully improve patient outcomes."