Crescent Regional Hospital: the first US hospital to bring doctors in by hologram

Crescent Regional Hospital, an acute-care hospital less than an hour south of Dallas, became the first hospital in the United States to use life-size holographic technology for patient care, bringing a doctor into the room as a life-size 3D hologram that patients see with the naked eye, in real time.

The deployment

Crescent installed a full-size 86-inch Holobox and a video studio, and is rolling out The 22, the 22-inch Holobox Mini, at locations across the hospital and its associated clinics. A specialist is captured in the studio and appears, life-size and live, at the point of care: no headset, glasses or app for the patient.

Where it's used

Patients use hologram visits for pre- and post-surgical consultations across cardiology, emergency care, gastroenterology, neurology, orthopedic care, pulmonology, general surgery, spine health and wound care.

What it changes for staff

On-site nurses still own the patient relationship. The hologram extends the existing care team, it does not replace it. From the specialist's side the day looks like a normal clinic, except the patients are in different locations and there is no drive time between appointments.

Why it matters

Crescent's CEO and managing partner, Raji Kumar, said integrating the technology would shorten patient wait times, increase access to specialty-care providers, and improve patient care across multiple disciplines. Holoconnects estimates the approach can save doctors up to 20 hours a week otherwise lost to travelling between sites.

It is a concrete answer to the specialist-access problem: a patient reaches a specialist, and a specialist reaches more patients, without either travelling, and at life size, so the consultation feels present rather than like another video call.