Today’s podcast is a conversation between Dr. Howard Gurr and Dr. Skip Rizzo. Dr. Rizzo is well known for his work with VR and PTSD. He is one of the first psychologists to recognize the benefits of VR for psychological issues. Dr. Rizzo talks about his introduction to VR, the benefits of VR for mental health problems and his research with VR. Here is Dr. Rizzo’s bio:Albert “Skip” Rizzo is a clinical psychologist/neuropsychologist and Director of Medical Virtual Reality at the University Of Southern California Institute for Creative Technologies. He is also a Research Professor with the USC Dept. of Psychiatry and at the USC Davis School of Gerontology. Skip conducts research on the design, development and evaluation of Virtual Reality systems targeting the areas of clinical assessment, treatment and rehabilitation across the domains of psychological, cognitive and motor functioning in both healthy and clinical populations. This work has focused on PTSD, TBI, Autism, ADHD, Alzheimer’s disease, stroke and other clinical conditions. In spite of the diversity of these clinical R&D areas, the common thread that drives all of his work with digital technologies involves the study of how interactive and immersive Virtual Reality simulations can be usefully applied to address human healthcare needs beyond what is possible with traditional 20th Century tools and methods. In 2010 he received the “American Psychological Association Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Practice of Trauma Psychology” and in 2012, the MMVR Satava Award for excellence in the use of VR for therapeutic applications. In 2015, he received the Society for Brain Mapping and Therapeutics “Pioneer in Medicine” award presented to individuals who have significantly contributed to the scientific advancement in the fields of medicine through a multidisciplinary approach. To view some videos on his work, please visit this YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=UUQrbzaW3x9wWoZPl4-l4GSA&feature=plcp

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