TUHF’s Ignite for Impact Awards highlight projects pushing the boundaries of innovation in TUH. Here we take a closer look at one of the award winners – VR Rehabilitation.

This project from Critical Care and the Physiotherapy Department was awarded funding of €10,000 from TUHF as part of our Ignite for Impact initiative. The main objective of the project is to offer suitable patients virtual reality rehabilitation (VRR) for up to three sessions whilst they are in critical care. This rehabilitation consists of range of movement and cognitive tasks using either controllers or movement sensors places on upper limbs, lower limbs or on the patient’s trunk.

The project was led by Nina Holden, Clinical Specialist Physiotherapist in ICU, who reported many benefits for patients who have used VRR. She said: “We have received very positive patient feedback with 100% patient agreeing that sessions were enjoyable and they were immersed in the experience. No patients reporting any symptoms of cyber sickness (i.e. dizziness or nausea). All patients also report that the equipment was comfortable to wear.”

Some of the challenges faced by clinicians included delays in starting the project due to issues getting the correct connection to a secure network and ensuring the correct process was in place for patients using VRR. Despite this the team noted that the positive feedback from patients demonstrates the “huge impact” that these short rehabilitations sessions can have in terms of patient experience.

 “The patient feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, and it has been very rewarding to see the levels of enjoyment and immersion in this form of rehabilitation. It has also been great to engage staff in this innovation project, and they have had lots of great ideas in terms of how else it could be used in the future!”

The initiative has seen positive results in the initial stages and VRR has been confirmed to be safe for use in critical care with the five patients who have used it so far. There have been no adverse events with 12 VRR sessions completed and a total of 193 additional rehabilitation minutes were delivered.

Innovate Health empowers hospital staff to think creatively and explore new ideas, driving significant advancements in patient care and healthcare technology. You can learn more about Innovate Health here: Innovate Health - Tallaght University Hospital Foundation (tuhf.ie)