“VR for nursing home residents”: a practice project involving nursing students

Experiencing nature through VR can improve the quality of life of nursing home residents. Future nurses should be empowered in the use of health-promoting technologies.

Issue. Nursing home residents (NHR) have few opportunities to go outdoors. Experiencing nature through virtual reality (VR) can elicit psychological benefits such as reminiscence and enhanced mood. This project has a dual purpose: i) to empower nursing students with practical skills in facilitating VR experiences for NHR, and ii) to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of delivering VR experiences to NHR.
Description of the project. The project was initiated in August 2022 as a collaboration between the University of South-Eastern Norway, Lier’s Secondary School, and Drammen City. The VR experience consists of viewing, through a VR headset, a 10-minute 360° video reproducing a sequence of natural landscapes with matching soundscapes. The VR headsets are provided by Lier Secondary School and set up by the pupils attending the Electrical and Computer Technology line. As part of their practice training, supervised by teaching staff, third-year undergraduate nursing students plan and facilitate the VR experience among the residents of four nursing homes in Drammen, and subsequently submit a report summarizing their field observations.
Results. To date, five groups of nursing students (n=15) took part in the practice project. The initiative was generally positively evaluated by the students. In their reports, they described that operating the VR headset and facilitating the experience was mostly unproblematic, though they underlined the importance of considering the time and skills required for setting up the equipment. Despite some initial scepticism, most of the residents agreed to try the VR experience, though some refused or removed the headset shortly after the video started. During the VR experience, the residents appeared to feel a high sense of presence in the virtual world, commenting and pointing at what they were seeing and stating that they felt like they were “out in nature”. In many instances, the VR experience triggered reminiscence of places previously visited, and the residents appeared to be more relaxed or in a better mood afterwards. The VR experience also seemed to have elicited socialization, as residents tended to talk about it with each other. However, some residents disliked the experience, and some found the headset uncomfortable or experienced cybersickness (mainly in the form of mild dizziness).
Lessons. Through this project, nursing students can improve their knowledge and skills in using VR technology as a cost-effective innovation that can improve the well-being of NHR. Facilitating the VR experience among NHR is feasible and generally well accepted, though a certain degree of knowledge and preparation are required. Moreover, scepticism and possible adverse responses among the NHR warrant careful consideration.