Tandem VR: Synchronized Nature-Based Experiences in Virtual Reality for Hospice Patients and Their Caregivers

Prisma Health-Upstate

Status: Active, not recruiting

Conditions: Fear of Death; Hospice; Anxiety; Pain; End of Life; Palliative Care

Treatments: Device: Tandem Virtual Reality

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT06186960

2079177-3

Details and patient eligibility

About

Background: Nature-based virtual reality (VR) and other outdoor experiences in head-mounted displays (HMDs) offer powerful, non-pharmacological tools for hospice teams to help patients undergoing end-of-life (EOL) transitions. However, the psychological distress of the patient-caregiver dyad is interconnected and highlights the interdependence and responsiveness to distress as a unit. Hospice care services and healthcare need strategies to help patients and informal caregivers with EOL transitions.

Full description

Methods: This study uses a synchronized Tandem VR approach where patient- caregiver dyads experience immersive nature-based and other outdoor VR content. This mixed methods study will recruit 20 patient-caregiver dyads (N = 40) enrolled in home hospice services nearing the end-of-life. Dyads will experience a personalized nature-based or other outdoor VR experience lasting 5-15 minutes. Self-reported questionnaires and semi-structured interviews will be collected before and after the VR intervention to identify the impacts of personalized nature-based and other outdoor Tandem VR experiences on the QOL, pain, and fear of death in patient-caregiver dyads enrolled with hospice services. Additionally, this protocol will determine the acceptance of personalized nature-based and other outdoor Tandem VR experiences by dyads as a non-pharmacological modality for addressing patient and caregiver needs. Acceptance was quantified by the number of dyads accepting or declining the VR experience during recruitment.

Discussion: Using personalized, nature-based and other outdoor VR experiences, the patient-caregiver dyads can simultaneously engage in an immersive encounter to help alleviate symptoms associated with declining health and EOL phases for the patient and the often overburdened caregiver. This protocol focuses on meeting the need for person- and caregiver-centered, non-pharmacological interventions to reduce physical, psychological, and spiritual distress.

Enrollment: 11 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• English speaking
• Projected life expectancy of <6 months (established by hospice experts)
• Cognitively intact (has sufficient judgment, planning, organization, and self-control)

Exclusion criteria

• Having a cognitive impairment that affects protocol participation. This will be done with the assistance of Research Recruiters to assess eligibility.
• Have a condition that interferes with VR usage, including but not limited to seizures, facial injury precluding safe placement of headset
• Have a prognosis of hours or actively dying at the time enrollment
• Patients with motion sickness
• Patients with claustrophobia
• Patients with visual and hearing impairment
• Patients with inability to speak English

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: N/A

Interventional model: Single Group Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

---

11 participants in 1 patient group

Tandem Virtual Reality Experience

Experimental group

Description:

Tandem VR Intervention After the surveys are completed, the researchers will share a personalized library of immersive, nature-based, 360-degree VR experiences for the participant-caregiver dyads to choose from based on their VR Intake Form. Once the dyad has determined their desired Tandem VR experience from the library, the researchers will assist the dyads in donning the VR head mounted display (HMD). The researchers will ensure the safety of both dyads while using the HMDs. The researchers will then initiate the Tandem VR experience. The duration of the Tandem VR experience will be 5-15 minutes.

Treatment:

Device: Tandem Virtual Reality