The CPR Video Game
Recently, I was walking around the Indianapolis airport and encountered this:
It was a CPR simulator. I loved the idea. Sure, it gave off uncanny valley vibes of a non-gender gym-ball vinyl piece of sculpted human chest, but the idea that for free a machine could help a bored member of the public become familiar with the proper compressions and timing required to potentially save someone’s life… is a great!
If I was at the airport with my kids, they would have jumped all over this concept (potentially, literally) but as a sole traveler, even with time to spare before my flight, I shuddered at the idea of attracting a crowd if I were to place my hands on this mechanical cadaver and perform compressions.
This is not a technology problem but a UX problem. The idea of teaching people CPR through an interactive game is wonderful but slight modifications might make the machine more approachable and have the impact the creators desired:
- Make it less uhmm… human. Could it be a cute animal? Could you show cute animations to lure people into playing? Could you show a high score? Gamify it?
- Make it more private. Could it be placed in an area or it such a way that doing chest compressions in public isn’t going to cause the lone traveller passing by to feel self-conscious?
- Or… make it more shareable. I’m sharing it because it caught my eye but it’s OK to explicity ask to share something. Could your score or a certificate be shared with friends online? Could you be invited to have your photo taken as you save the mechanical cadaver. Could photos of other people saving the cadaver be displayed on the screen? Showing other people using the machine might overcome the shy person’s hesitation to engage.
Sometimes, it’s the little UX tweaks that can make a big difference. In this case, it could help save more lives.
