A 3D dive for the well-being of seniors: virtual reality comes to the Margherita Grazioli nursing home at Povo (TN)

27 February 2025 By Marzia Lucianer

A feasibility study conducted at the “Margherita Grazioli” Nursing Home at Povo, Trento, Italy, which investigates the use of virtual reality to manage uneasiness in older patients with cognitive impairment, has started in the past few days. The research, conducted by Fondazione Bruno Kessler and the nursing home, is assessing the impact of relaxing virtual environments on anxiety, apathy and agitation behaviors, using 3D viewers. The study involves 20-60 participants and focuses on the safety and feasibility of the approach, paving the way for future investigations of clinical efficacy. The project, led by Susanna Pardini, a researcher, psychologist and psychotherapist, and the team from FBK’s Digital Health Research Unit, will be carried out thanks to the facility’s health care providers.

A wave of innovation (the second, actually) has hit the “Margherita Grazioli” nursing home at Povo, where in late January a meeting was held to present the project, which aims to improve the quality of life of its residents through the use of virtual reality.

The event was attended by many guests, family members, caregivers, the board of directors and health providers, all eager to discover the potential of this research project. Experts from the Kessler Foundation, Oscar Mayora, head of the DHRes Research Unit, along with the study coordinator, Susanna Pardini, illustrated the potential offered by technology and virtual reality in caring for the elderly with cognitive impairment, which had already been explored in an early study in 2023.

Director Martina Roncador opened the meeting by emphasizing how technologies have always fascinated her “because I have always thought that they can be useful in our lives and they can help us improve, they can simplify it, they can be supportive in cases where we have particular limitations, they can help us feel better, they can be a source of well-being.” She added, “This project on virtual reality started already a couple of years ago with the goal of helping our residents feel better.” “Our goal“ – specified APSP Director Roncador – ”is that these tools can be integrated into the daily routines of the nursing home and can be part of our operators’ toolbox.”

“The main objective of the study,” Susanna Pardini elaborated, ” whose protocol has been approved by the ethics committee of the Trento Province Healthcare System, is to monitor and analyze the condition of residents, enabling health care personnel to provide timely and targeted care. This approach not only promises to raise the standard of care, but also to optimize resources and improve operational efficiency.”

“Virtual reality is safe for the elderly with cognitive issues and can have positive effects on anxiety and depression”-susanna Pardini pointed out. “VR creates pleasant events for the person, recreating environments that can no longer be experienced in reality. There are many studies in the literature both in Italy and around the world that are consistent on this,” highlighting how the use of virtual reality ” can reduce isolation and increase engagement.” In fact, the newly started study specifically intends to test whether virtual reality can also be used during residents’ agitation episodes, offering an alternative to pharmacotherapy and trying to “divert their attention, appease the state of anxiety, of agitation that they may experience during the day.”

A key aspect of the project is the involvement of the facility’s operators, who will guide the use of the technology and are familiar with the needs of the users. Susanna Pardini pointed out that “the goal in the future is precisely to think about, to use on a daily basis these tools that do not replace a person, they create an aid, thus one more tool in the operator’s toolbox to manage the situations experienced by the facility’s guests.”

The project plans to collect data between February and May 2025, involving between 20 and 60 residents with varying levels of cognitive impairment. The researchers expect results that will lead to a reduction in anxiety and agitation behaviors, with no negative side effects. “Delving into the effectiveness of virtual reality in reducing agitation and promoting calmness is what we would like to find out,” said Oscar Mayora, head of the Digital Health Research Unit at FBK’s Digital Health and Wellbeing Center. “If I am agitated in any situation in life and then I have the opportunity to enter a relaxing environment, a reassuring environment, an environment that makes me feel good, maybe this moment of agitation I can be able to control it better, I can be able to reduce it, so that I regain some control of the of the moment I am living.” Mayora was keen to point out that this is not a commercial solution, but “it is a solution made together so that we can take advantage of a benefit, however, through doing research done properly,” highlighting the importance of collaboration with different actors in the area, including the Province of Trento and the Healthcare System. “These technologies,” Oscar Mayora concluded, ”can support operators in the management of daily activities, reducing the workload and minimizing the risk of errors.”

During the presentation, FBK researchers Marco Dianti and Michele Lamon, who are developing the relaxing virtual environments, had the viewers tested by allowing attendees to immerse themselves in the customizable 3D scenarios, such as Mount Bondone, Trento’s cathedral square, the sea, snow-capped mountains, and alpine lakes. The 3D viewser used, Oculus Quest 2, connected to a cell phone, in fact allows the health care provider to see on the screen what the user is looking at in virtual reality and instantly customize the environments according to the user’s preferences, offering an immersive multisensory experience that can “divert attention” from negative emotions.

The virtual reality project represents a breakthrough in the approach to caring for the elderly, and offers an innovative tool to improve their emotional and cognitive well-being. “People, citizens and in this case guests, the people we collaborate with, must always be at the center of these research activities” – Oscar Mayora said.

“The Margherita Grazioli nursing home“ – director Roncador said in closing – ” is once again at the forefront in adopting innovative solutions for the care of the elderly, setting itself as a reference model in health and human services. The initiative represents a significant step toward a more modern and efficient healthcare, in which technology and humanity work together to ensure the well-being of the most fragile people.”

Enthusiastic comments came from both the facility’s guests and their families.