Palliative care is brought to the homes of cancer and chronic disease patients thanks to the Metaverse Hospital of the University Hospital of Cagliari and the "Serena" Multisensory Room. This is the first healthcare facility in Italy to offer this service in virtual reality. The space, already physically available at the San Giovanni di Dio Hospital, is now accessible at home, providing relief, reducing perceived pain, and improving the quality of life of those unable to move or get around.
The service was inaugurated this morning in Cagliari during a ceremony attended by Vincenzo Serra, Special Commissioner of the University Hospital of Cagliari, Francesco Di Costanzo, President of the Fondazione Italia Digitale, Gabriele Finco, Medical Director of the University Hospital of Cagliari, Fabrizio Meloni, Director of Communications and External Relations at the University Hospital of Cagliari, Maria Cristina Deidda, Palliative Care Day Service Manager, and Andrea Marrucci, Future Administrator. Patients who have experienced the palliative care service in the Metaverse also attended the presentation.
The project was developed by the Communications and External Relations department in collaboration with the Palliative Care Day Service and the Information Systems department of the Cagliari University Hospital. It encompasses two virtual reality services: palliative care consultations and augmented reality access to the Stanza Serena, a multisensory stimulation method already successfully implemented at the Cagliari University Hospital.
The Hospital in the Metaverse of the University of Cagliari (AOU) is an immersive environment that allows patients to receive support even remotely. In this space, you can book appointments and lab services, pay your bill, consult your Electronic Health Record (EHR), communicate with the Public Relations Office, and much more, all from the comfort of your home.
The "Serena" Multisensory Room in the Metaverse is a virtual space that reproduces the active room at San Giovanni di Dio and is inspired by the Snoezelen method, which, through soft lighting, sounds, images, and scents, creates an environment capable of alleviating suffering and providing moments of serenity. "All the stimuli present in the room act at the cortex level," explains Dr. Maria Cristina Deidda, a palliative oncologist at San Giovanni di Dio, "promoting relaxation, alleviating feelings of anxiety and anguish, and reducing perceived pain by up to 40%, thus improving patients' quality of life." Until now, all this was only possible in person. Now, thanks to the Metaverse, the experience is accessible everywhere.
For Vincenzo Serra, extraordinary commissioner of the University Hospital of Cagliari, "this is a very important and timely technological project, which offers numerous benefits, improving the quality of life of elderly and chronically ill patients."
"The Serene Room," Dr. Maria Cristina Deidda concludes, "is the idea of the embrace that palliative care provides. The thought that this new technique can be used at home, allowing patients to detach themselves from moments of suffering, is a humanizing experience."
(Unioneonline)