Easing Parental Stress with Virtual Reality: A New Tool for Families of Hospitalized Children

 

Parenting can be stressful, parenting a sick child in a hospital even more so.  Although it is well known that improving caregiver stress is important for improving patient outcomes, inpatient interventions focused on patients’ families are rarely implemented. However, recently researchers from Stanford University have developed a virtual reality (VR) headset to help parents participate in short, guided meditations that help them relax and develop heathy coping skills.  In a study published this year, researchers found that VR-guided meditation reduced parental anxiety by about 30%. Interestingly, the researchers found that tool was particularly helpful for Spanish-speaking families, who could complete the meditation in their primary language. There are limited behavioral health resources for Spanish-speaking populations and the larger effect in this population might indicate a larger unmet need. Thus, VR-guided meditation might serve as an effective and culturally sensitive therapeutic option for the parents of hospitalized children.