Virtual Reality Experience in Bone Marrow Transplant Treatment - Technical Evaluation (ViREB-TE)

Abstract

Abstract Purpose: Virtual reality (VR) is increasingly being used in health care, however, its use as part of therapy during prolonged inpatient treatments is less well established. This study assessed the experience of haemato-oncology inpatients, their carers or relatives and staff of a 20-minute VR expedition to assess acceptability, safety, and opportunities to improve inpatient experience. Methods: Through several familiarisation days, patients, supporters, and clinical staff took part in a supervised 20-minute trial of a 3-dimensional (3-D) VR escape using Google WanderTM using an Oculus Quest 2 VR HeadsetTM. Participants completed a validated survey of their VR experiences. Results: 31 patients, 10 staff members and 9 relatives or patient friends visited 55 unique countries with 19 participants (38%) wishing to visit home, family, or friends. All participants enjoyed the experience, felt energised and had a sense of well-being following the immersion. One participant felt fatigued by the experience. No one found the experience disagreeable with none recording difficulty in navigating within the device. No participant complained of nausea with two patients experiencing dizziness and one developing a headache. Nine participants (18%) complained of eyestrain while 12 participants (24%) complained of a sense of “head fullness”. None of the symptoms were perceived to need to shorten the immersion experience or lasted beyond the immersion. Conclusion: 3D-VR i “holiday from hospital” can be used in acute inpatients safely with little supervised training and broad acceptance of the technology potentially providing a distraction from clinical care routines.