Located south of the city of Geneva, Switzerland, and bordered by the Arve River, the Champel neighborhood offers a peaceful and green living environment. Two long-term care facilities (EMS)—the Les Bruyères residence and the Val Fleuri facility—are located here and have recently been equipped with virtual reality Headsets . Both facilities acquired a Lumeen system with three Headsets: Val Fleuri in 2021 and Les Bruyères in 2022.

Initially a source of curiosity, virtual reality experiences quickly virtual reality a regular part of the range of activities offered by the recreation teams. They just as quickly garnered very positive feedback from the residents. To better understand the observed benefits of using virtual reality Headsets virtual reality elderly people, we spoke with members of the recreational team at each facility: Gregory Galley, head of recreational services at Les Bruyères nursing home, and Damien Corajod, activities coordinator Val Fleuri nursing home. Here’s a look back at several months of use in the heart of Geneva, Switzerland.

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Fieldwork at two long-term care facilities (EMS) in the Champel neighborhood of Geneva

With more than 200 residents, the Val Fleuri nursing home is one of the largest long-term care facilities in Geneva. The Les Bruyères nursing home, meanwhile, is home to more than 70 residents. Both facilities have teams entirely dedicated to providing recreational activities for elderly people, supporting their “social, cultural, and interpersonal lives.” For example, the activities team at the Val Fleuri nursing home consists of about ten professionals.

The activity coordinators draw on a wide range of recreational and personalized activities, all of which serve as opportunities to foster “self-esteem,” “ personal fulfillment , ” and “social interaction and connection,” in the words of Gregory Galley. For Damien Corajod, it’s also about “helping [residents] experience as many positive emotions as possible and supporting them through more difficult emotions.”

Each virtual reality session virtual reality unique and is driven by the relationship activities coordinatoractivities coordinator activities coordinatoractivities coordinator and the resident. “There is no single way to use Lumeen.” It is theactivities coordinator jobactivities coordinator “pave the way before and during the activity ” so that the resident feels as comfortable as possible.

The goal, then, is to make every immersion session a positive experience. Lumeen sessions are available to every resident—whether or not they have cognitive disorders—as long as they express a desire to participate.

How virtual reality into the activities offered in nursing homes?

At the Les Bruyères nursing home, three types of workshops are offered on a regular basis:

- Workshops open to everyone ( residents, professionals, families) held every month at the cafeteria— “anyone can come try it out and see what virtual reality is really like ”;

- So-called “group” workshops that bring together elderly people 2 or 3 elderly people ;

- Individual workshops, upon request. 

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At the Val Fleuri nursing home, individual sessions or small group sessions (3 to 5 people) are the norm. Given the size of the facility, careful planning is required to ensure an equitable distribution of Headsets the nursing home’s various units and its many residents. At both nursing homes, sessions for smaller groups are generally offered at least once a week—and more often when staffing and time constraints allow.

So, how does a session work?

Damien Corajod guides us through the three main stages of a virtual reality session at the Val Fleuri nursing home.‍

First, explain the proposed approach and let the resident decide whether to participate in the immersion program

The first experience is important: “If it evokes positive emotions, the person will want to try it again.” The way the tool is presented to the resident is therefore crucial: it depends on theactivities coordinator sensitivity, as well as on their knowledge of the person.activities coordinator be gentle and patient, take care to reassure the person, and explain the headset and how it works so that the person is open to using it: “They can stop the experience at any time.” Then comes the choice of immersion. “I like to explain to them that, thanks to this trunk, we’ll be able to travel from Val Fleuri—to escape from Val Fleuri.” But where to? There are countless excursion options, whether you’re looking to revisit memorable places from the past or dive into new, exotic adventures: swimming with dolphins, going on a dog-sled ride, exploring Greece… over 100 experiences are available, and new ones are added to the catalog every month! 

Next, support the immersion process

A virtual reality session virtual reality an experience in its own right. First, in terms of comfort: if the resident isn’t comfortable with the headset,activities coordinator suggest simply placing it over their eyes until they get used to this new device. In addition to the visual experience,activities coordinator the immersion with commentary; “If I’m familiar with the place, I also add my own personal touch by sharing my own experiences.” 

Damien often invites the most reluctant residents to join him in watching, on his tablet, the experience of another senior. This approach has allowed him to convince a few skeptics to try the immersive experience for themselves—this time with the headset!

Finally, the presentation phase begins

Sometimes conversation arises spontaneously at the end of the session, inspired by the journey they’ve just experienced or guided by the emotions they’ve felt. In fact, many residents tend to recall memories and share them. At other times,activities coordinator toactivities coordinator encourage discussion; in such cases, the materials provided can prove to be valuable tools.

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Combining wonder and tranquility, the Lumeen system serves Swiss residents 

In most cases, feedback from residents has been extremely positive. Grégory Galley describes virtual reality Headsets virtual reality “a wonderful tool ” for elderly people restless elderly people and cites calmness as the key benefit of this experience; “some people even fall asleep.”

The Getaway module, which offers trips or even full-immersion experiences in close contact with nature, has been a huge success at both nursing homes. Residents come “as if they were at the movies,” some in search of exotic getaways—one activities coordinator a resident who is “a big fan of Thailand”! “Nearby” destinations, such as Swiss landscapes, which are more likely to bring back memories, are also highly favored by the recreation teams: “There’s a lot of sharing when we tap into people’s life experiences.”

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Another standout success: content featuring Animals among the most popular with residents. Lumeen has also established a partnership with the Beauval Zoo—ranked the 4th most beautiful zoo in the world—to expand its catalog of animal-related content. Grégory Galley mentions a particularly restless resident who finds relief only in watching this content: “As soon as she sees me, she associates me with this app,” “she talks about it with the other residents and the activity coordinators.” Damien Corajod, for his part, recalls a shared fit of laughter with a resident as she lifted her legs to “escape” an animal that appeared at the bottom of her screen, for fear that it might touch her.

While these stories may make you smile, they are far from being mere anecdotes. For over 20 years, the effects of virtual reality the subject of a growing number of studies, all of which point to its benefits: whether in improving the well-being and socialization of elderly people, reducinganxiety pain alleviating the behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia. The Lumeen device is part of this trend and, alongside scientific experts and partners, is participating in several user studies and clinical trials. Used as solution non-pharmacological solution , the Lumeen device is also certified as medical device. 

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Following the numerous Lumeen sessions held at these two Swiss nursing homes, we were proud to note the high level of appreciation expressed by the activity coordinators for our solution. Both confirmed their institutions’ desire to continue using it with elderly people were “generally very receptive.” At the Les Bruyères nursing home, about one-third of the residents now enjoy these sessions. We would like to sincerely thank Gregory Galley and Damien Corajod for the insightful—and inspiring—interviews they kindly granted us. Lumeen stands alongside Les Bruyères Nursing Home, Val Fleuri Nursing Home, and all Swiss facilities that wish to do so, to continue this wonderful adventure.

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➡️ To watch a video testimonial from a facility, click this link.

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