For a child undergoing a CAT scan, the unknown world of medical equipment can be intimidating and frightening. Often they have no real knowledge what will happen next. In fact, a child’s anxiety during the procedure can be so severe it is often necessary to sedate them. Retakes are also common place, causing delays and prolonging the experience for the child.

The Kitten Scanner, placed in the hospital waiting room, helps replace the fear experienced by a child undergoing a medical CAT scan with understanding. It is a scaled version of the CAT scan that the child will be confronted with during the examination and includes a TV screen and toys– and through play, it teaches the child about the procedure they are about to face.

An animation on the TV screen invites the child to choose an animal character –  a crocodile, elephant, robot or chicken - and place it on the bed of the Kitten Scanner. The child can then slide the bed and character into the bore of the scanner, mimicking what happens in reality. When the animal character is in the bore of the scanner, its embedded RFID tag activates an animation on the TV screen, telling the story of that particular character. Who is the character, what did they do, why they need to go to the hospital for a scan. Through this story-telling, the animation shows children about how a real CAT scanner works, and how doctors to see inside the body.

“The Kitten Scanner allows children to get involved in their own care and learn about the process in a subtle and playful way," says Alex Tan, Creative Director for Ambient Experience at Philips Design in Andover, USA. "They are inherently curious and will be naturally attracted to it - we deliberately made it very approachable and intuitive to use. There are no buttons to press; placing the toy in the scanner automatically activates it. By putting toys through this mock procedure they can relax and take their minds off why they are there, yet at the same time there are actually learning."

Part of the total Ambient Experience flow soultion, created for CT environments it enhances the patient and family experience and improves workflow. This people-friendly solution results in reduced numbers of retakes and sedation rates, particularly in young children. “We’ve heard a lot of anecdotal evidence that staff very much appreciate how it distracts children, helps them calm down and reduces any anxiety they may have," says Alex.

The Kitten Scanner already holds the title ‘best of the best’ from the 2009 red dot design awards and will be awarded with a coveted Bronze Industrial Design Excellence Award from the IDSA in September.

+ Find out about how the Kitten Scanner was created