Digital travel using virtual reality in inpatient psychiatric care: Focus group exploration of perspectives from individuals with lived experience.

Objective: Hospitalization in psychiatry is a challenging experience associated with increased levels of distress, anxiety, and loneliness. Novel technologies are being developed to help alleviate these symptoms and support the treatment and rehabilitation of these individuals. This study aims to explore the perspectives of individuals with lived experience of a complex mood disorder on the proposal of an immersive virtual reality (VR) travel-in-nature application with a social feature being an available service in a psychiatric inpatient unit.

Methods: A thematic analysis was performed with data acquired from two focus group semistructured interviews conducted by a patient partner with individuals currently hospitalized in a short-term inpatient unit dedicated to complex mood disorders.

Results: Three themes were generated from the thematic analysis: (a) factors enhancing acceptability, (b) barriers, and (c) envisioning the future of the application and VR in inpatient mental health.

Conclusions: Participants were largely positive regarding the potential of the application and VR in psychiatric inpatient care. They viewed it as a promising rehabilitation tool for relaxation and positive escapism. Concerns regarding suitability, potential risks associated with the technology, and technical barriers were raised and warrant further investigation.

Implications for practice: This study's preliminary findings offer relevant information for designing the implementation process of VR in psychiatric inpatient units, with the intent of tailoring services to the needs and realities of their intended users. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).