Virtual Worlds have the ability to provide a shared, social, semantic space within ones own home. Those confined by whatever means to their home have the ability to reach out and interact with a large community of people from around the world that may share their day to day struggles. I am not suggesting that it is the only way, or that it is the best way, I am simply acknowledging the social values that it may bring to many more people in the future as it has already begun to do so in the last few years.

Think Second Life for those with severe multiple sclerosis (see Alice Krueger in Second Life). Think Second Life for visually impaired users. Some great work and discussion in this area has already begun and is growing, e.g. Stephen Vickers research project on Rapid Gaze Based Interaction Techniques with on-line virtual environments for motor-impaired users and voanews video on disabled users in Second Life. I would recommend anyone interested in this health/medical application for virtual worlds to learn about the Health Info Island project in Second Life funded by the Greater Midwest Region of the National Network/National Library of Medicine. Of course these virtual environments provide a place for distributed learning with in-world projects focusing on public health. See this clip on Second Life + Public health. Finally, the journal of Virtual Worlds is soon to release papers focusing on Health and Virtual Worlds.

I would be greatly interested in hearing others opinions on this topic.