Naj Modak

BBC News

HULL UNIVERSITY TEACHING HOSPITALS NHS TRUST Glass building with sloped roof. A smaller reception structure in-front and to the side. There are trees and bollards with paving. HULL UNIVERSITY TEACHING HOSPITALS NHS TRUST

The virtual reality therapy has already proved popular with young people according to Castle Hill Hospital

A hospital in East Yorkshire is offering the use of virtual reality (VR) equipment to cancer patients and their loved ones to help them relax.

Castle Hill Hospital offered the tech to young patients being treated in its Teenage and Young Adult Unit last year.

The headsets transport users to relaxing landscapes such as beach, mountain and forest settings and the Northern Lights.

It proved so popular that the Cottingham hospital has invested in more equipment to extend the project to other cancer patients and will also hold a taster session for loved ones and carers.

Brain Recovery Zone A mountain scene with grass and rocks on them. There are trees and a bright sky with a few clouds.Brain Recovery Zone

Dr Jennie Ormerod said the technology can help patients regulate their emotions and put them in a better place psychologically

Dr Jennie Ormerod, from the hospital, said: “Studies have shown that the same parts of our brain are [as] activated in virtual environments as they are in real-life settings.”

Last year the Humber and North Yorkshire Cancer Alliance provided £1,600 to the hospital to buy the VR equipment.

Following “fantastic feedback”, the cancer psychological team invested in more equipment so patients of any age and their family, friends and carers could experience it as well.

HULL UNIVERSITY TEACHING HOSPITALS NHS TRUST Lady with a patterned dress sat on a maroon sofa and wearing a VR headset.HULL UNIVERSITY TEACHING HOSPITALS NHS TRUST

A psychological support worker with a VR headset that has been in use at Castle Hill Hospital

Dr Ormerod said: “A cancer diagnosis can be really difficult to come to terms with and treatment can sometimes be gruelling, so we wanted to be able to offer something to help our patients regulate their emotions and put them in a better place psychologically.”

Patients can book to use the headsets at the Macmillan Information Centre on Tuesday afternoons from 3 June.

A drop-in session will also take place at the centre on 24 June for anyone interested in testing the headsets.

More on this story
Related internet links

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *