My City Wellness Fall 2021

GHCI Quality of Life Director, Sue Root (left), helps a patient navigate the VR headset.

Root finds. “Through our virtual reality headsets, patients can see the visuals and hear the sounds of comfort, making it so much easier to find that place of peace.” The individual VR headsets are hands-free and simple to use. Patients can choose from 36 different experiences – life on a beach in Cape Cod, Irish land scapes, swimming with aquatic life or listening to and watching the gentle, soothing sounds of ocean waves. They also can tune into general educational informa tion about their cancer, treat ments, side effects and what to expect as a cancer patient – infor mation they received from their

patients how the headsets work and guides them through the process of finding programs they want to watch. Programs run from five to ten minutes in length. Virtual reality is feasible to use as a distraction intervention during chemo treatments and is well-accepted by patients.The headsets are available to any patient undergoing chemother apy but are not recommended for patients who have issues with diz ziness, vertigo or motion sickness. Genesys Hurley Cancer Institute provides the newest treat ments and technology in a warm, welcoming, home-like setting. For more information, visit ghci.org. Š

“We are helping remove patients from the reality of their treat ment and taking them to a place of peacefulness.” Sue Root, GHCI Quality of Life Director physician offered visually and in easier-to-understand terms that they can listen to as often as they want. The GHCI staff shows

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