VR at Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust providing insight into the patient experience

Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust recently brought the world of virtual reality (VR) to its hospital wards.

The trust launched the Enhanced Care for Older People EnCOP initiative in July 2022. Its mission is to support staff to explore and implement care solutions for older individuals who may live with complex and evolving conditions.

From the beginning of 2024, the EnCOP team has extended its training offering to non-clinical teams that support patients and carers. Teams that will benefit include porters, chaplains, domestic and clerical staff, and volunteers.

The EnCOP team visited Wansbeck General Hospital, North Tyneside General Hospital, Hexham General Hospital, Alnwick and Berwick Infirmary and Haltwhistle War Memorial Hospital to help colleagues understand the challenges that older patients face.

They did this through VR headsets that replicate the visual conditions patients with different stages of frailty and dementia can experience.

Clare Collins, pharmacy technician and EnCOP educator community lead, said: “Sessions like this are a great opportunity for us to work with our colleagues on the ground to understand the patient experience.

“Supporting staff to improve the all-round experience is at the heart of everything we do within EnCOP and the trust in general.

“Non-clinical teams are friendly, empathetic and understanding towards patients, working alongside our clinical teams to deliver the highest level of care possible.

“By giving them insight into the patient experience, we believe it will help them understand how they can better support people living with frailty and dementia.”