Virtual reality and disability: what are the results after 2 years of experimentation?

Since its creation in 2018, Lumeen has continued to observe the social and therapeutic benefits brought by virtual reality to the elderly. A growing number of establishments and health professionals have therefore trusted us to support their residents in improving their well-being on a daily basis. It is thanks to these experiences that the idea of experimenting with our virtual reality solution in the disability sector quickly emerged.

Indeed, the possibilities of integrating virtual reality in this field, especially for therapeutic purposes, are considerable; they have also been explored, in France and throughout the world, for several years. The Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Region understood this well and allowed us to make the experience a reality by providing financial support to the project in March 2020 for a two-year experiment.

Strong professional and human collaboration

And it is alongside recognized partners in the field, such as the Center for Motor Education (CEM) Jean-Marie Arnion de Dommartin, that we have embarked on this new human adventure.

The CEM of Dommartin is part of the Odynéo network, an association present in three departments (Rhône, Ain and Jura), for people with disabilities and their loved ones. It welcomes children and adolescents aged 11 to 20 with neuromotor disabilities and supports them in their life journey. Through an individualized pedagogical, educational and therapeutic project, the CEM offers a specific welcome for each of the residents and accompanies them in their process of awakening and socialization, as well as in learning to communicate, while offering them appropriate paramedical and medical follow-up.

Group virtual reality workshops

Expérimentation de la réalité virtuelle Lumeen dans le secteur du handicap au centre Jean-Marie Arnion

Lumeen was then added to the range of tools mobilized by the center's teams. Virtual reality headsets are used as supports for the organization of group workshops, integrating both educational and pedagogical dimensions, non-drug therapy, as well as more fun and recreational aspects.

Within the teams, occupational therapists and psychomotricians make the most frequent use of it, as well as educators. Most often, workshops consist of a professional — in charge of preparing and structuring the experience — and two to three young people, whom he accompanies from the beginning to the end of the session.

Two specific modules are regularly used:

- First, the “Escape” module, which offers immersive experiences: you can then swim with dolphins or even contemplate the Northern Lights. Accompanied by mediation content, i.e. an introductory presentation and a feedback quiz adapted to the target audience, these experiences tend to encourage exchange and discussion;

- The “Reminiscence” module gives the possibility, through the use of Google Street View, to transport users to a specific location. They can thus travel to a place they know, prepare for a future visit and thus prevent or at least alleviate a possible feeling of anxiety in the face of novelty, or simply discover new places through the virtual reality headset.

Real benefits noted by health professionals

At the end of the first year of use, we had discussions with Doctor Simonnot, (co-founder of the Handicap International association and medical coordinator within the Odynéo network), who drew the following conclusion:

“The results obtained, identified mainly by professionals who have a specific purpose, are generally positive. For some young people, the results are spectacular, with a real calming effect, especially for young people with brain injuries with serious behavioral disorders. Young people are peaceful, calm, accessible to exchange and discussion.”

An already promising assessment, which we are proud to have reinforced, since many positive aspects of Lumeen have since been identified, after two years of experimentation.

Therapeutic use

The CEM welcomes young people who, for many of them, have major cognitive and behavioral disorders, as well as limited access to sensory discoveries. The variety of teaching materials that can be mobilized is in fact constrained and limited.

By offering a new and immersive experience, sometimes surprising, often captivating, the use of virtual reality glasses has proved to be a key tool for the work of attention and concentration. The professionals interviewed thus underlined the capacity of the device to” bring [residents] to the present moment ”. Moreover, Lumeen sometimes makes it easier for child/caregiver pairs to enter into relationships, for example, by eliciting comments or interaction on the situation they are experiencing.

Glasses are also described as a “mediation” tool for achieving other therapeutic goals. First of all, on an ad hoc basis: by redirecting the user's attention, immersions can facilitate muscle relaxation and promote relaxation of body and mind. Then over the long term: young people thus gradually build up a stock of positive mental images, associated with specific emotions. It is then a question of helping them to welcome a sensation, an emotion, to understand what they are experiencing and how it is translated into their body, in order to be able to reproduce it later. This repertoire of images is becoming a new tool, with the idea of being able to mobilize it later on other occasions in daily life, for example to fight against anxiety or pain during care.

A device at the service of body perception

Virtual reality has also emerged as a valuable ally for learning the body and sensations. First, hearing and sight are the two senses primarily mobilized by the immersive experiences offered. By confronting young people at the center with situations that are sometimes inaccessible in their daily lives, they can already generate new sensations and emotions on their own.

An activity that is often completed by supervising professionals with various sensory supports. These supports can be tactile (by presenting different textures -such as beach sand-, of different materials, by a “thermal” situation -by mobilizing hot or cold supports, depending on the proposed immersion-) or even olfactory (by combining characteristic scents -lavender for a trip to Provence-). It is then a question of overcoming physical limitations and of making residents discover new sensations and stimulations.

A pedagogical and educational tool

Finally, Lumeen has established itself as a real animation tool. First of all, by giving people with disabilities the opportunity to live.” A time apart ” and to feel “like the others.” Thus, words even from one of the CEM educators:” With virtual reality [...] young people see the same thing as me. [...] It's something they can do as well as I can. ”. They then experience situations and emotions that are unique to them.

Moreover, by offering to discover a theme, a place, a landscape, virtual reality glasses offer a new experience that promotes learning. Here too, professionals can enrich the immersion tools with music, sensations or complementary knowledge and thus offer sessions that have an educational side, for young people who are not always in school.

An innovative solution adapted to establishments

Of course, during these two years of experimentation, the adventure was not without challenges. People with disabilities have specific needs and for some, the device is not always easy to use. For example, the weight of the helmet was thus a real challenge, sometimes requiring human assistance to support it.

Anxious to offer a solution that is ever more adapted to our different audiences, we therefore decided to propose a new helmet model to overcome this problem. Thanks to its better distributed weight, this new helmet allows a greater number of people to benefit from our solution, in the best possible way.

At the end of these first twenty-four months, the device proposed by Lumeen undeniably enjoyed a very positive frequency of use by CEM professionals. Results that would not have been possible without the trust placed in them by all of our partners.

Here we would like to sincerely thank Dr. Simonnot for his investment, as well as all the CEM teams for their commitment and their testimonies. And while the CEM expressed the wish to perpetuate the tool within its structure, it is with joy and pride that Lumeen officially renewed its collaboration with the center in 2022.

We also thank the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Region for its support and especially Sandrine Chaix, special advisor in charge of disability. We are proud to participate in the creation of the handi-welcoming, handi-caring and handi-inclusive society of tomorrow.

It is on the strength of these developments that we are now reaffirming our interest and our desire to contribute ever more to the progress of research on the benefits of virtual reality in the disability sector, and to its deployment. Lumeen will continue its commitment and commercial development in this direction. We look forward to continuing this great adventure with you!