CathSym: Device and Method to Bring Haptic Feedback to Urinary Catheterization Training

Urinary catheterization is one of the most widely taught procedures in the medical field. Current simulation-based training methods allow the students to be trained on non-realistic mannequins that do not adequately develop their psychomotor skills. This lack of proper training translates into increased likelihood of the medical professional causing damage to the patients' urethra in the form of false passages when faced with a difficult catheterization. The leading cause of this damage is the overuse of force that diverts the catheter head into the soft tissue. With the emergence of haptic feedback and virtual training into the medical field, we aimed to design and build a novel haptics-based mixed reality simulation trainer for teaching urinary catheterization. We developed a software system accompanied with a customized haptic feedback device to help the user train in various catheterization scenarios to gain experience for improving their psychomotor skills and teach them to navigate blockages and other anatomies in the urethra. Our simulation platform has the potential to adequately provde the trainees with realistic force and visual feedback that are representative of what the user might experience in real world Foley catheterization.