When someone has a stroke, it is common practice for an occupational therapist to carry out a home risk assessment before they are discharged from hospital. However, with increasingly shorter hospital stays and limited resources, new approaches are needed to support therapists, patients and their carers through the hospital discharge process.
One innovative solution being explored by The University of Nottingham’s Rehabilitation Research Group is the use of virtual reality environments.
This three-year research project, led by Dr Kate Threapleton in collaboration with the University of Derby and funded by the Stroke Association, is exploring how such technology can be developed and used as part of discharge planning.
How it works
Patients are shown a virtual reality environment, which depicts a generic home layout with furniture and various household items. The virtual home includes safety risks, such as access difficulties and trip hazards, and also shows how assistive equipment may be fitted, moved and stored.
The aim of this approach is to facilitate discussions about typical issues a patient might face, and to encourage them and their carers to consider how their home might be made safer by the use of adaptations.
The virtual reality environment is being tested using a pilot randomised controlled trial, comparing its impact versus the impact of home visits/usual care on outcomes such as patient falls and readmissions. This project will conclude in November 2016.