Virtual and augmented reality gamification of visuospatial neglect treatment: therapists’ user experience

Visuospatial neglect (VSN) is a cognitive disorder after stroke in which patients fail to consciously process and interact with contralesional stimuli. Visual Scanning Training (VST) is the recommended treatment in clinical guidelines. At the moment, several mixed reality versions of Visual Scanning Training (VST) are being developed. The aim of this study was to explore the opinions of end-users (i.e., therapists) on the use of Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) in VSN treatment.

Therapists played one VR and two AR Serious Games, and subsequently filled out a questionnaire on User Experience, Usability, and Implementation.

Sixteen therapists (psychologists, occupational, speech, and physiotherapists) played the games, thirteen of them evaluated the games. Therapists saw great potential in all three games, yet there was room for improvement on the level of usability, especially for tailoring the games to the patient’s needs. Therapists’ opinions were comparable between VR and AR Serious Games. For implementation, therapists stressed the urgency of clear guidelines and instructions.

Even though VR/AR technology is promising for VSN treatment, there is no one-size-fits-all applicability. It may thus be crucial to move towards a plethora of training environments rather than a single standardized mixed reality neglect treatment.

As therapists see the potential value of mixed reality, it remains important to investigate the efficacy of AR and VR training tools.