Drew Redepenning, MD, grew up playing video games. But he didn't realize their power until a patient with a spinal cord injury introduced him to the field of adaptive gaming.
That interaction sparked a passion — and his future career.
A third-year resident at UPMC's Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Dr. Redepenning cofounded Empowered Esports. The program hosts adaptive gaming events for people with physical disabilities and connects them with accessible gaming equipment.
"It's really nice that UPMC is able to provide this service, as this service is not typical at pretty much any rehabilitation site," says Dr. Redepenning. "To be able to provide this service is huge for UPMC because we're able to provide a unique service that isn't available in most other places."
A Passion Begins
The field of adaptive gaming creates modified video game systems and controllers for people with physical disabilities.
Dr. Redepenning's background is in biomedical engineering, meaning he has combined expertise in medicine, engineering, and biology. In 2018, while working in assistive technology at a Minnesota rehabilitation institute, he learned about adaptive gaming from a spinal cord injury patient.
"One of his big goals was to be able to go back and be able to play video games," Dr. Redepenning says. "He was unable to move his upper or lower extremities, and he wanted to be able to play video games just using his mouth."
Dr. Redepenning programmed a game controller to meet his patient's needs.
"Just seeing the huge impact it had on him, I was hooked," he says.
He began working to expand adaptive gaming offerings at that rehabilitation institute. Soon after, he decided to pursue medical school so he could better help people with disabilities.
"I just looked at it as expanding on what I could do for people," Dr. Redepenning says. "I wanted to expand on my current skills to help people from a medical standpoint, but also keep building the skills I had in the area of assistive technology, too, and help people at a wider capacity."
A Long-Time Goal
One of Dr. Redepenning's goals was to create an adaptive gaming program. He was finally able to do so after arriving at UPMC in 2023 for his residency.
UPMC Mercy is ranked for physical medicine and rehabilitation on U.S. News & World Report 's Best Hospitals List. The hospital also ranks first in National Institutes of Health (NIH) rehabilitation research funding.
"There's a huge emphasis on assistive technology here at UPMC," Dr. Redepenning says. "There's not really another program out there for physical medicine and rehab that does so much in the area of assistive technology."
At UPMC, he connected with people who helped him pursue his goal of creating an adaptive gaming program, including Lynn Worobey, PhD, co-director of the University of Pittsburgh Model Center on Spinal Cord Injury; Mitch Bell, rehab innovation specialist; and Randy Huzinec, PT, associate director of clinical services for the Smart Tech for Paralysis program.
"The idea behind Empowered Esports is something we've had for some time," Dr. Redepenning says. "We wanted to bring to UPMC an organized gaming event where we can help people get set up with adaptive gaming equipment and build a community where we can have people come in from the community and play video games together."
Dr. Worobey and Dr. Redepenning applied for a grant from the Craig H. Neilsen Foundation, which supports people with spinal cord injuries.
Dr. Redepenning didn't know if the team would get the funding, but much to his surprise, they did.
"Things moved very, very fast after that," he says. "I realized that this whole thing is going to become a reality."
Empowered Esports held its first event in fall 2025.
Building a Community
Since its launch, Empowered Esports has grown significantly. It now hosts free monthly events at the UPMC Mercy Pavilion, where people with disabilities can play video games together. They can use adaptive controllers provided by UPMC or bring their own.
Through adaptive gaming assessments, Dr. Redepenning, Mitch, and Randy determine appropriate adaptive gaming equipment. And, thanks to the grant funding, they can help people buy the equipment they need.
The last hour of the three-hour event features friendly gaming competitions. Each event has a theme, and the winning gamers earn prizes.
“It's a blast for me," Dr. Redepenning says. "It's crazy because there's so much going on. I'm always worn out at the end of it. But it's like that good worn-out where you're like, 'Man, that was a blast.'"
He adds, "The best part is seeing how happy people are at the events and seeing what impact it has on them."
Attendees have a wide range of conditions, from Duchenne muscular dystrophy and spinal muscular atrophy to spinal cord injury and stroke. But they bond over gaming.
Dr. Redepenning says many of the participants return for future events.
"This is a big chance for socialization and where all their friends are now," he says.
Advocating for Adaptive Gaming
Since his introduction to adaptive gaming, Dr. Redepenning has become a strong advocate for it. The field itself is growing, too.
A 2022 study in The Journal on Technology and Persons with Disabilities surveyed over 1,000 U.S. adults with disabilities. The study reported that 45.9% of respondents played video games.
Meanwhile, more and more companies have produced adaptive gaming devices.
"It's been pretty amazing," Dr. Redepenning says of adaptive gaming's growth.
He points to two major benefits of adaptive gaming: social and functional.
Dr. Redepenning was the lead writer on a 2022 study in Assistive Technology that reported on the social benefits of adaptive gaming. The study reported that it positively influenced people's life satisfaction and quality of life. Participants reported better social relationships and less social isolation.
"The unique thing about gaming as a recreational activity is that it allows individuals with and without disabilities to play together, regardless of what their abilities are, or what controller they're using, or what their functions are," Dr. Redepenning says.
"So, it's a recreational activity that really evens the playing field. It allows individuals of all types of abilities to play together."
From a functional standpoint, adaptive gaming equipment can serve other purposes, like computer access. That allows people to use their equipment for work or school. The college student Dr. Redepenning worked with in Minnesota used his adaptive gaming equipment to finish his degree.
Dr. Redepenning is proud of the work he's accomplished with Empowered Esports. But he's striving for more. His most recent research has focused on removing barriers to people's access to adaptive gaming equipment.
The Empowered Esports events have helped with that. Dr. Redepenning also created an online resource to help connect people with adaptive gaming equipment. The website offers details on adaptive gaming equipment, assessments, and other resources.
"Adaptive gaming is one of those things I think I'm going to be doing my whole life," Dr. Redepenning says. "I want to get to a point where this is a service that's widely available at every rehab site.
"If I get to the day where so many people are doing it that I don't need to do it anymore, I think that would be awesome. Because then that means the mission's been solved, and that this service is super widely available."
