![[L - R: Arno Hartholt, Sharon Mozgai, Dr. Randall W. Hill, Jr, Dr. Summer J. Decker; Dr. Leslie Sazon; Dr. Jonathan Ford; Dr. Jerold Shinbane, David Nelson]](https://cbc.ict.usc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/LSSaxon-CBCevent.webp "Dr. Leslie Saxon USC CBC")
[L – R: Arno Hartholt, Sharon Mozgai, Dr. Randall W. Hill, Jr, Dr. Summer J. Decker; Dr. Leslie Sazon; Dr. Jonathan Ford; Dr. Jerold Shinbane, David Nelson]
Colloquium hosted by Dr. Leslie Saxon gathers clinical and technology leaders to envision breakthroughs in virtual humans, advanced visualization, and immersive medical training.
The USC Center for Body Computing (CBC), in partnership with Keck Medicine of USC, gathered leaders in medicine, engineering, and emerging technologies at the Institute for Creative Technologies (ICT) for a forward-looking colloquium on the intersection of healthcare and human performance. The event, Healthcare & Human Performance Reimagined, was hosted by Dr. Leslie A. Saxon, Executive Director of the CBC and Professor of Medicine at the Keck School of Medicine, who welcomed participants to a day of high-level dialogue on the role of virtual humans, virtual reality, and advanced visualization in shaping the future of clinical care.
“This is about envisioning what’s possible when technology and medicine are not simply connected, but fully integrated,” Dr. Saxon remarked in opening the session. She outlined the event’s purpose as both an ideation session and a springboard for a multidisciplinary proposal that will leverage creative and existing technologies to expand the boundaries of human performance and healthcare delivery.
Keynote Perspectives on Innovation
The program featured two keynote addresses from distinguished leaders whose work exemplifies the transformative potential of innovation in medicine.
Dr. Summer J. Decker, PhD F-AAFS, Director, USC Center for Innovation in Medical Visualization, Grace Whisler Endowed Professor in Medicine, Professor of Clinical Radiology, Surgery, and Pathology, Keck School of Medicine, brought deep expertise in clinical radiology, surgery, and pathology. She spoke on advanced visualization applications—ranging from patient-specific anatomical models for surgical planning to immersive simulators for medical training—and the ways such tools are redefining both education and care. Drawing from her previous role at the University of South Florida, where she led pioneering 3D printing initiatives in medicine, Dr. Decker described a future in which precise, interactive models help clinicians understand, teach, and treat with unprecedented clarity.
Her vision for the Center extends beyond Keck, encompassing collaboration with Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, other USC schools, industry partners, and government agencies. “Visualization is not an accessory to medicine,” she observed, “it is increasingly the lens through which we understand disease, design interventions, and teach the next generation.”
The second keynote, delivered by Dr. Jerold Shinbane, Professor of Clinical Medicine and Director of the USC Arrhythmia Center, examined the promise and limitations of advanced cardiac imaging. With a career spanning electrophysiology fellowships at UCLA and UC San Francisco, Dr. Shinbane has focused on harnessing imaging technologies such as cardiovascular CT and MRI to better diagnose, guide, and monitor treatment for heart rhythm disorders. He underscored the interplay between imaging innovation and patient outcomes, particularly in the realm of device therapy for congestive heart failure.
While the tools are becoming more sophisticated, he noted, the challenge remains in integrating them seamlessly into patient care. “Technology can show us more than ever before,” Dr. Shinbane said, “but its value is in how we apply it to the patient in front of us.”
Exploring the Technology Landscape
Following the keynotes, the agenda turned to a series of focused presentations showcasing the breadth of expertise within ICT and its relevance to health and human performance.
Dr. Randall W. Hill, Jr, Executive Director of ICT, provided an overview of the institute’s capabilities, highlighting its decades-long work in virtual humans, immersive simulations, and advanced software for training and research. This introduction set the stage for a closer look at specific research programs.
David Nelson, Director of the Mixed Reality (MxR) Lab at ICT, outlined the lab’s work in blending digital and physical environments to create powerful training and therapeutic tools. His presentation demonstrated how mixed reality can enhance clinical decision-making, patient education, and surgical rehearsal.
Arno Hartholt, Director of Research and Development Integration, expanded on the theme with an exploration of integrated virtual humans—lifelike, responsive avatars designed to engage users in natural dialogue. These virtual humans can serve as patient surrogates, training facilitators, or health coaches, offering scalable solutions for education and behavioral intervention.
Sharon Mozgai, Director of the Virtual Human Therapeutics Lab, addressed the evidence base and design considerations behind therapeutic virtual humans, discussing their application in mental health, chronic disease management, and rehabilitation. She noted both the promise and the limitations of these tools, stressing the need for rigorous evaluation to ensure efficacy.
In a return to the clinical side, Dr. Saxon shared insights into “What and How We Measure from the Human,” emphasizing the role of sensors, wearable devices, and continuous monitoring in closing the loop between performance metrics and healthcare interventions.
From Ideas to Action
The colloquium concluded with an open discussion in which attendees—from technologists and clinicians to engineers and researchers—shared perspectives on how best to weave these capabilities into a coherent, collaborative initiative. The consensus: meaningful change will require a working group that cuts across disciplines, uniting medicine’s evidence-driven rigor with technology’s capacity for rapid iteration.
The proposed collaboration will address pressing issues in health care delivery, including patient access, clinician training, and the optimization of human performance. By building on ICT’s track record in immersive and interactive technology, and Keck Medicine’s depth in clinical expertise, the working group aims to generate proposals capable of attracting support from academic, industry, and governmental stakeholders.
A Vision of What’s Next
The day’s discussions reflected a shared belief that the future of healthcare lies at the nexus of human expertise and advanced technology. Whether in the form of hyper-realistic 3D models that guide a surgeon’s hand, virtual patients that help clinicians practice delicate conversations, or imaging that reveals the earliest signs of disease, these tools are poised to redefine the contours of care.
Dr. Saxon closed the meeting with a note of both ambition and practicality: “Our next step is to turn these ideas into a plan—one that draws on the best of what we already have, and the creativity to imagine what does not yet exist.”
The CBC and ICT will now move forward with forming the proposed working group, bringing together additional faculty and USC schools as the vision expands. For participants, the day was not merely an exchange of ideas, but the start of a journey toward reimagining how medicine is taught, practiced, and experienced.
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