Easing Anxiety: VR helps pediatric patients through scary procedures
Maine Health Innovation Stories
“When pediatric patients require infusion therapy, the experience can often make them feel anxious or nervous. Infusions require placing an IV in the child’s arm or using a needle to access a port within the chest, procedures that can be uncomfortable and scary for kids.
Dr. Aaron Weiss, Nurse Amanda McGeachey and their colleagues at the new Sam L. Cohen Pediatric Infusion Center at Maine Children’s Cancer Program (MCCP) wanted to alleviate the stress for these kids and thought virtual reality might be the answer. They brought the idea to MaineHealth Innovation and took part in the 2022 Spring Cohort to develop the concept. With the support and guidance of the Cohort, they’ve created a program to provide patient’s virtual and augmented reality experiences to distract them and create a calming environment during their procedures.” … [read more]
““I think the biggest positive so far about the VR headset is that it’s almost like a video game and it seems like it’s something they’re familiar with. When they have the headset on, they really aren’t thinking about what’s going on around them (i.e. port access, lab draws), and they’re easily distracted with telling me what underwater animals they can interact with or which desert animals they help find water. When some kids come into clinic, they’ll immediately say, ’I need the VR for my access,’ which has been really helpful to us. It’s been awesome to be able to follow along with what they see just by having the paper that tells you the times/animals/what’s happening next.””