Applications of virtual and mixed reality in healthcare

This chapter explores the increasingly influential role of Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), and Mixed Reality (MR) in modern healthcare, focusing on their applications in therapeutic interventions, rehabilitation, and medical education. While one of the first viable applications of VR involved usage in the treatment of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and phobias, these technologies have since expanded into a wide range of clinical applications. VR has proven particularly effective in exposure therapy, helping patients overcome anxiety disorders and phobias with a high degree of success. In physical rehabilitation, VR and MR are used to enhance motor recovery after stroke and manage chronic pain, further increasing efficacy by embodying participants in virtual avatars, thereby eliciting the phenomenon of embodiment and full-body ownership illusions.

The chapter also highlights the educational potential of VR and MR, particularly in medical and nursing training. These technologies are currently being utilised for a plethora of classroom activities, including anatomy instruction, surgical training, and simulation-based learning in nursing schools, significantly improving knowledge retention and clinical skills, while also bringing costs down. Finally, the chapter examines governmental initiatives, such as those by the National Health Service (NHS) in the UK and the Department of Veterans Affairs in the USA, which have supported the integration of VR into healthcare for treatments like phobia therapy.

As VR, AR, and MR technologies continue to evolve, their impact on healthcare is expected to grow, offering innovative solutions for patient care, therapeutic interventions, and medical education.