SafeVRwards
Completed
STUDY OVERVIEW
SUMMARY
Conflict between staff and patients is common in adult mental health inpatient units. Safewards is a 10-step framework to manage this, and we explored adding VR as an additional strategy (“SafeVRwards”). This multi-part study included co-design with bedside staff, implementation planning, and evaluation. Sub-studies examined staff perceptions and feasibility, and tested immersive nature scenes with and without matched scents, measuring relaxation, quality of experience, EEG, and heart rate variability.
KEY FINDINGS
Bedside staff reported positive experiences and interest in using VR to support relaxation and manage conflict. Both conditions showed improvements in relaxation and positive quality of experience ratings. Physiological data showed changes in brain activity (EEG) and heart rate variability, with some differences in the multisensory condition. An important finding was that participants who relaxed less often felt the scents did not match their expectations. Results highlight the importance of design, customization, and integration into care.
PUBLICATIONS
Lopes, M., De Jesus Jr., B., Rosanne, O., Pardini, S., Appel, L., Smith, C., & Falk, T. (2024). VR nature relaxation study. Frontiers in Virtual Reality, 5, 1451704. https://doi.org/10.3389/frvir.2024.1451704
Lopes, M., De Jesus Jr., B., Rosanne, O., Pardini, S., Appel, L., Smith, C., & Falk, T. (2025). Heart rate variability in VR forest bathing. AHFE Conference. https://doi.org/10.54941/ahfe1006347
Pardini, S., Kim, S., Lopes, M., De Jesus Jr., B., Smith, C., & Appel, L. (2024). SafeVRwards VR intervention. BMJ Open Quality. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjoq-2024-002769
PARTNERS
FUNDERS
