Immersive reality takes aged care and disability support to new horizons!
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The world is more connected than ever before, yet ironically, loneliness remains a pervasive issue, particularly among the senior population.
In Australia, a significant number of older individuals, especially those in residential aged care, experience a sense of social isolation.
However, a beacon of hope shines through the advent of immersive reality technology, which is proving to be a game-changer for our elderly loved ones.
Professor Evonne Miller of Queensland University of Technology delved into the potential of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality for aged care residents.
Her research suggested that these technologies offer 'lots of potential and opportunity' to improve the quality of life for those who find it challenging to venture outside their care facilities.
‘The reality is, for too many people, when they enter aged care, it can be too difficult to leave,’ Professor Miller said.
Imagine being able to traverse the streets of Paris, embark on an African safari, or swim with dolphins—all from the comfort of your armchair. This is the promise of VR, which can transport users to far-off places without the need for physical travel.
‘Virtual reality headsets are relatively inexpensive now, maybe $500, but if you integrate into the leisure program inside aged care—alongside bingo, aerobics, yoga, and swimming—you can actually have a virtual reality experience that does indeed take people elsewhere,’ she explained.
However, the implementation of such technology is not without its hurdles.
Professor Miller pointed out, ‘One of the challenges we had was, too many aged care facilities are not designed with the future in mind, so things like accessing wi-fi—we tried to Chromecast inside and we couldn't do that.’
Despite these challenges, individuals like Che Turner from Meanjin are finding creative solutions.
Turner's social enterprise uses immersive reality to transport participants to exotic locales such as Central Australia and the French Alps, all from the comfort of an air-conditioned van.
Inspired by the positive impact of virtual train trips he witnessed in the United Kingdom's aged care sector, Turner brought the concept to Australia with a unique twist.
He observed the beneficial effects of simulated train journeys—where participants sit at a table designed to mimic the inside of a train carriage and view passing scenery on a large-screen TV—had on the locals.
‘It builds anticipation [for participants], so your brain sort of gets the same endorphin rush of, “Oh, we're going on a holiday, we're doing something exciting,” that it would do for someone that still has the ability to travel. That was one thing that I really noticed; it was a talking point throughout the whole nursing home,’ he explained.
For a while, he had been contemplating the idea of implementing something akin to this locally, and he recalls his moment of inspiration occurring as he reflected on the sustained effectiveness of a charitable organisation offering mobile laundry and shower facilities to individuals facing homelessness.
‘I used to work next to their office in Brisbane when I was with another aged care provider, and I'd walk past every day on my lunch break and think, “what a brilliant idea,”’ he recalled.
‘Then I put the two together and thought, “Well, if they can do it with washing machines, why can't we deliver a service in a van that does train journeys? Why don't we create a vehicle that can enable people—who don’t have the mobility—to travel?”’
Mr Turner mentioned that conceiving the notion of adapting the virtual train journey concept into a customised van was one aspect, yet transforming it into a fully immersive experience posed another challenge altogether.
He was aware that train simulations were already accessible in certain nursing homes, albeit with certain restrictions.
‘With the train experiences when they're in nursing homes, they're just [shown on] the one TV, and you do get the feeling that you're just looking out of the window, and part of the challenge was, “How can we make it more immersive?”’ he said.
The procedure entailed renovating the inside of a van to replicate a train compartment, fitting two 50-inch monitors on either side to emulate windows, and incorporating five computers with tailored software to seamlessly synchronise the visuals across the screens.
The footage depicting various journeys—such as through the English countryside and along the Ghan route in Central Australia—was contributed by members of online train communities.
‘We welcome everyone on board. We sit down, we've got coffee-making facilities inside, and we serve high tea, so when they sit down at the table, it's a full first-class dining experience, with white tablecloths and silver cutlery,’ Mr Turner shared.
‘We generally start the conversation with, “When was your last holiday?” and that's a real conversation starter, and from there, conversation continues about different train journeys the participants have been on.’
The initiative premiered at an aged care facility in Brisbane towards the end February, and Mr. Turner expressed that he had been pleasantly surprised by the enthusiastic responses received.
‘This is a passion project, and I work Monday to Friday, so we only can do it on weekends at the moment, but the response has been incredible—most of the comments are people didn't expect this, they didn't think it was possible.’
‘I mean, at the end of the day, it's a van with a few TVs in it, and it's just incredible how that can stimulate so much joy, happiness, and awe,’ he continued.
Last year, it was reported that this technology was also used by an aged care service provider to improve care for individuals with certain conditions.
Have you ever tried immersing yourself in a VR or AR experience? Do you think this could improve the care provided to seniors in nursing homes? Share your stories and insights with us in the comments below!
In Australia, a significant number of older individuals, especially those in residential aged care, experience a sense of social isolation.
However, a beacon of hope shines through the advent of immersive reality technology, which is proving to be a game-changer for our elderly loved ones.
Professor Evonne Miller of Queensland University of Technology delved into the potential of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality for aged care residents.
Her research suggested that these technologies offer 'lots of potential and opportunity' to improve the quality of life for those who find it challenging to venture outside their care facilities.
‘The reality is, for too many people, when they enter aged care, it can be too difficult to leave,’ Professor Miller said.
Nursing homes are now using innovative technology—such as VR and AR—to help reduce social isolation and provide emotional enrichment for residents. Credits: Shutterstock
Imagine being able to traverse the streets of Paris, embark on an African safari, or swim with dolphins—all from the comfort of your armchair. This is the promise of VR, which can transport users to far-off places without the need for physical travel.
‘Virtual reality headsets are relatively inexpensive now, maybe $500, but if you integrate into the leisure program inside aged care—alongside bingo, aerobics, yoga, and swimming—you can actually have a virtual reality experience that does indeed take people elsewhere,’ she explained.
However, the implementation of such technology is not without its hurdles.
Professor Miller pointed out, ‘One of the challenges we had was, too many aged care facilities are not designed with the future in mind, so things like accessing wi-fi—we tried to Chromecast inside and we couldn't do that.’
Despite these challenges, individuals like Che Turner from Meanjin are finding creative solutions.
Turner's social enterprise uses immersive reality to transport participants to exotic locales such as Central Australia and the French Alps, all from the comfort of an air-conditioned van.
Inspired by the positive impact of virtual train trips he witnessed in the United Kingdom's aged care sector, Turner brought the concept to Australia with a unique twist.
He observed the beneficial effects of simulated train journeys—where participants sit at a table designed to mimic the inside of a train carriage and view passing scenery on a large-screen TV—had on the locals.
‘It builds anticipation [for participants], so your brain sort of gets the same endorphin rush of, “Oh, we're going on a holiday, we're doing something exciting,” that it would do for someone that still has the ability to travel. That was one thing that I really noticed; it was a talking point throughout the whole nursing home,’ he explained.
For a while, he had been contemplating the idea of implementing something akin to this locally, and he recalls his moment of inspiration occurring as he reflected on the sustained effectiveness of a charitable organisation offering mobile laundry and shower facilities to individuals facing homelessness.
‘I used to work next to their office in Brisbane when I was with another aged care provider, and I'd walk past every day on my lunch break and think, “what a brilliant idea,”’ he recalled.
‘Then I put the two together and thought, “Well, if they can do it with washing machines, why can't we deliver a service in a van that does train journeys? Why don't we create a vehicle that can enable people—who don’t have the mobility—to travel?”’
Mr Turner mentioned that conceiving the notion of adapting the virtual train journey concept into a customised van was one aspect, yet transforming it into a fully immersive experience posed another challenge altogether.
He was aware that train simulations were already accessible in certain nursing homes, albeit with certain restrictions.
‘With the train experiences when they're in nursing homes, they're just [shown on] the one TV, and you do get the feeling that you're just looking out of the window, and part of the challenge was, “How can we make it more immersive?”’ he said.
The procedure entailed renovating the inside of a van to replicate a train compartment, fitting two 50-inch monitors on either side to emulate windows, and incorporating five computers with tailored software to seamlessly synchronise the visuals across the screens.
The footage depicting various journeys—such as through the English countryside and along the Ghan route in Central Australia—was contributed by members of online train communities.
‘We welcome everyone on board. We sit down, we've got coffee-making facilities inside, and we serve high tea, so when they sit down at the table, it's a full first-class dining experience, with white tablecloths and silver cutlery,’ Mr Turner shared.
‘We generally start the conversation with, “When was your last holiday?” and that's a real conversation starter, and from there, conversation continues about different train journeys the participants have been on.’
The initiative premiered at an aged care facility in Brisbane towards the end February, and Mr. Turner expressed that he had been pleasantly surprised by the enthusiastic responses received.
‘This is a passion project, and I work Monday to Friday, so we only can do it on weekends at the moment, but the response has been incredible—most of the comments are people didn't expect this, they didn't think it was possible.’
‘I mean, at the end of the day, it's a van with a few TVs in it, and it's just incredible how that can stimulate so much joy, happiness, and awe,’ he continued.
Last year, it was reported that this technology was also used by an aged care service provider to improve care for individuals with certain conditions.
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