Group donates virtual reality therapy to coast VA clinics

BILOXI, Miss. (WLOX) - Health care workers with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) will soon introduce a virtual-reality (VR) therapy program to South Mississippi veterans struggling with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

The Biloxi VA Medical Center’s health team is one of three VA medical groups that participated in a special training course Wednesday to learn more about a VR-based exposure therapy to administer to PTSD patients.

The tool, Bravemind, was developed by the University of Southern California’s Institute for Creative Technologies.

Military veterans can virtually enter 14 different life-like, war-fighting environments, based in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Through a headset and a remote control wand, the immersive experience includes 360-degree visual scenes, high-definition sound an a vibrating platform underneath the seated patient, as well as in-control and interactive movement response.

The group’s goals for the system are to allow traumatized patients to revisit their scarring events in a controlled way, decondition their emotional responses to them and redevelop other relationships and memories to them.

“Evidence is, it works,” clinical psychologist Todd Adamson told WLOX. “And research has shown that it is as effective as prolonged-exposure therapy. And, with a subset of veterans who experience depression and post-traumatic stress, it actually can be more effective.”

Soldier Strong, a Connecticut-based nonprofit organization, donated more than 30 of the VR programs to the Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System.

“I’m just really excited to give clinicians another tool,” Gulf Coast VA Innovation Specialist Elizabeth Williams said. “I’m all about finding ways and avenues and paths for providing clinicians opportunities to find non-pharmaceutical options for their patients.”

Patients can begin using the VR devices at the Biloxi VA Medical Center following the group’s final training session Thursday.

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