We’ve been working with a range of NHS services since 2018, conducting several projects that have a positive impact on the staff and local communities.
Over the past few years, one of our main focuses has been working to explore ways in which VR might be used as a tool to promote the wellbeing of NHS staff.
Our first study in this area revealed that a relaxing VR nature experience (Nature Treks), delivered during the working day, was associated with significant increases in emotions such as relaxation and happiness, and significant decreases in anxiety and stress in NHS staff working in a trauma service. Further, the intervention was found to be feasible, safe and comfortable, despite the samples’ limited experience with technology. The full text is displayed below, and can be accessed here.
Expanding on this work, we launched the VR-SWELL (VR for Staff WELLbeing) research project - a collaboration, facilitated by the Brunel Partners Academic Centre for Health Sciences (BPACHS), between the Fred Company, Brunel University London and Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust (CNWL). The aim of the project was to work more closely with a smaller number of NHS staff, from a variety of departments within CNWL, to explore the acceptability and feasibility of using VR technology on a wider scale, and what that might look like. This research yielded really positive and interesting findings, and is currently being written up for publication.
We’re continuing our work in this area, and are currently working with 8 different CNWL teams, from staff in a CAMHS service to the wellbeing teams in 2 prisons. There is, of course, a very broad range of team situations: from 4 person, part-time, distributed teams who only see each other in person once a week, to teams with over 250 full time staff spread across multiple sites.
In each site, we have one or more designated VR leads who are now “VR ready” through the receipt of training, support materials, and their own headset, enabling them to explore and get really comfortable with the hardware and the experiences themselves. We’re continuing to work closely with those leads to explore how using VR might best suit their team to support their wellbeing, ensuring we’re mindful of the particular challenges and opportunities in each unique environment. This includes understanding the logistical issues at each site, learning more about the individuals and team dynamics, and supporting the VR leads to implement their ideas such as team challenges or creating virtual art and relaxation spaces. We also offer more structured sessions to explore using VR as a more direct (but very fun!) communication-improving tool.
We look forward to sharing the results of SWELL and our current projects more formally, soon. In the mean time, please do get in touch should you want any more information about any of our work!