Use of virtual reality in the inpatient rehabilitation of COVID-19 patients

Abstract

Introduction Use of virtual reality (VR) in healthcare has expanded in recent years. The challenges faced by patients with prolonged COVID-19-related hospitalizations – social isolation, disability, neurologic sequelae, adjustment-related anxiety, depression, and stress – may be mitigated by the novel use of VR as one modality of a comprehensive rehabilitation plan. This descriptive study aimed to understand patient satisfaction and perceived benefit of virtual reality on a COVID-19 recovery unit, as well as the logistical and operational feasibility of providing VR content for patients and staff. Materials and methods During the COVID-19 surge in New York City in 2020, the COVID-19 Recovery Unit (CRU) of a large academic hospital invited patients and staff to participate in VR sessions with three categories of experience: (1) Guided meditation, (2) Exploration of natural environments, (3) Cognitive stimulation games. Patients and staff were surveyed about satisfaction and perceived benefit. Results 13 patients and 11 staff were surveyed, with median patient satisfaction scores of 8.42 out of 10, with ten representing “extremely satisfied,” and median staff satisfaction scores of 9.45. 13/13 patients answered “yes” to recommending the therapy to others, and 12/13 answered “yes” to perceived enhancement of their treatment. 11/11 staff answered “yes” to recommending the therapy to others, and 11/11 answered “yes” to perceived enhancement of their wellbeing. Discussion A VR program implemented on a COVID-19 rehabilitation unit for patients and healthcare providers was rated as highly satisfactory with perceived benefit by survey respondents. Participants commented that the use of VR was useful in coping with isolation and loneliness, and could be implemented within the context of clinical care for COVID-19 patients as part of a comprehensive rehabilitation model. The use of VR was also logistically and operationally feasible on the CRU. Future work to compare benefits of VR to standard neuropsychological rehabilitation is needed.

International PRISMA scoping review to understand mental health interventions for depression in COVID-19 patients

“…A majority (72.7%) of the studies were conducted in China, including 5 in China's Hubei province, which is where the virus is first known to have been discovered ( Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2021 ). Other study sites include India (1; Jerrin et al, 2021 ), South Korea (1; Kim et al, 2020 ), the United States (1; Kolbe et al, 2021 ), and Iran (1; Satoudeh et al, 2020 ), which demonstrates a dearth in research into treatment for COVID-19 patients and survivors from most regions of the world.…”

“…Telephone-based interventions may be highly successful in this patient population, with low withdrawal and refusal rates. Kolbe, Jaywant, Gupta, Vanderlind, & Jabbour (2021) Virtual Reality-based Mindfulness Intervention Applied VR's SootheVR headset provides guided medication sessions in highly realistic, three dimensional natural settings, and sessions where patients can passively and actively explore a variety settings (e.g., swimming with dolphins, or exploring world cities). Patients were not given tasks so as to maintain their autonomy as a therapeutic aspect of the experience.…”

The Role of Virtual Reality as a Psychological Intervention for Mental Health Disturbances during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Narrative Review

“…VR has advanced significantly in the healthcare field in recent years, functioning as an instructional tool, a pain distraction measure, and an extra platform for delivering evidence-based interventions such as mindfulness in neurorehabilitation and psychotherapy. The current study in the literature found that implementing this innovation in a hybrid medicine–rehabilitation inpatient unit resulted in a very positive reaction [ 42 , 64 ].…”

“…Table 1 illustrates the characteristics of the studies with a list of information on the names of studies, year of studies, country of origin, inclusive and exclusive criteria, outcome measures, interventions, and the benefits/disadvantages of VR interventions [ 47 , 57 , 58 , 59 , 64 , 65 ].…”

“… A flowchart describing the implementation of the VR tool within COVID-19 in a COVID-19 recovery unit (CRU). Reprinted from Kolbe et al, (2021) [ 64 ], Copyright (2022) with permission of Elsevier. …”