LittleSeed Uses Virtual Reality to Make Doctor Visits Less Stressful for Children
The Powell-based company developed VR games to help children cope with anxiety about shots, infusions and other stressors.
A 2017 medical technology startup based in Powell has been quietly taking seeds of ideas and growing them into change for pediatric patients in Columbus and around the country.
LittleSeed’s portfolio of projects is focused on improving the treatment experiences of thousands of children with life-threatening diseases, and the company itself is now poised to grow.
LittleSeed was founded by Jeff Penka, a seasoned tech entrepreneur, and Jeremy Patterson, an Ohio State University faculty member and researcher in the Advanced Computing Center for the Arts and Design.
The inspiration came after Patterson met Dr. Amy Dunn, a physician at Nationwide Children’s Hospital who was curious about whether virtual reality games could help kids with anxiety about needle sticks and infusion treatments. Penka says tablets and video games are commonly used to distract kids in hospital settings, but Patterson and Penka thought that approach could be improved on. “In a clinic, set-up time is important, and focus of the game, cleanliness. … We have to build tools, not toys. There has to be a clinical approach or it doesn’t work,” Penka says.
The co-founders began testing the limitations of existing hardware and software and crafted a custom solution for and with treatment professionals: an interactive virtual-reality game that captivates players and incorporates physical feedback on rhythmic, meditative breathing to calm and distract anxious patients.
Voxel Bay became the seed that sparked the company, as well as its first product. It was a finalist in the 2017 South by Southwest Interactive Innovation Awards and recently won an award from the Children’s Miracle Network.
LittleSeed’s team spent years honing Voxel Bay with clinicians and validating data with a few early-adopter pediatric groups and hospitals. The project is now ready for rollout on a subscription model.
The company’s second major product came via a clinician as well. Nurse Abby Hess, who works in the anesthesiology department at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, came up with a concept to ease the panic some patients experience with surgical anesthesia masks.
LittleSeed and Hess created EZ Induction, which introduces kids to the mask preoperatively as a game, changing the experience to one patients look forward to rather than fear.
To this point, Penka says LittleSeed has grown with some Third Frontier grant money but mainly through bootstrapping, mostly through educational and studio work for various clients.
Penka says creativity, engagement with patients and clinicians, and validation of the company’s thesis have always been part of LittleSeed’s approach. “Previously, we worked in SAS and enterprise, large-scale data, so when we say clinically driven and data proven, we need to be able to produce evidence,” Penka says. “We know how to be very patient-centric. Joy and novelty are key and provable, too.”
He says the next several years will be focused on pushing Voxel Bay and EZ Induction through product development and getting more products in the pipeline behind them. The company is now evaluating whether venture capital is an option for acceleration. “We’ve lived through the venture capital scene. We always appreciate people helping with great ideas, but if people don’t fund properly, you can cause compromise,” Penka says. “We are glad we are where we are and excited about where we are headed.”
Being able to fulfill the company’s mission over time is the goal, he says. The co-founders believe virtual reality holds yet-untapped promise for helping patients at any age, in many settings. “I’ve had a mother tear up next to me with her little boy in treatment and her saying, ‘He’s more at peace than I’ve seen him in months. He’s able to calm himself down and be where he needs to be.’ That’s what the impact of our work looks like.”
About LittleSeed
36 N. Liberty St., Suite B., Powell
Co-Founders: Jeff Penka and Jeremy Patterson
Launch: 2017
Employees: 5 full time
Annual Revenue: Would not disclose
This story is from the Summer 2023 issue of Columbus CEO.