Garden Village has delivered 500 hours of SILVR ADVENTURES. Letitia shares a few moments of magic about her sessions in aged care! Letitia runs sessions twice a week in Garden Lodge, Wintergarden and Westerweller.
Letitia can you share some highlights of the Virtual Reality Armchair Travel program with us.
We’ve had some adventures this year. I have taken virtual travellers on journeys to England, to the beauty of Italy and the wonders of ancient Egypt. These experiences can be 20 minutes while others are shorter experiences lasting only 5 minutes.
The virtual reality feels so realistic that it takes residents back to a time when they travelled with their spouse, the fun, the excitement and they enjoy recognising places and experiencing the wonderful feelings and memories that it stirs up. It is just magic to see and hear…. they are smiling as they watch and then happily chat as they recall their adventure, once the ‘goggles’ (headsets) come off.
As Real As Can Be
It was on a journey to Italy that Don was so immersed in the experience that he pulled out his phone to take a photo of what he was looking at. Deana was able to travel back to her birth place The Netherlands and loved it.
Tour Guide and Traveller
Another magic moment was when Elaine was acting as tour guide to Phil who was sitting beside her on their Italian journey. Elaine had travelled with her husband to Italy and Phil had not been out of Australia, Elaine was explaining where they were and what they were seeing. There is audio within the experience, but Elaine was able add to it or explain to Phil, it was so awesome to watch.
Nev the Pilot
One morning at Garden Lodge I put on a short experience of skydiving and yes, it’s very realistic! As usual there was a full house with a new adventurer, Nev. Nev’s a quiet guy, who didn’t feel overly interested when I first offered him the ‘goggles’ but he gave it a go. Well, wasn’t he a different fella after that. He told me of his passion, flying, and that he was a pilot a ‘little while ago’. His smile was so wide as he enthusiastically told me how he worked as a plumber during the week then on the weekend he flew his small plane out of Cessnock for skydivers. Amazing! If you could only have seen the light in his eyes, he was so happy.
Connection Memory Laughter & Wellbeing
I could go on and on with these wonderful recounts of the residents’ amazing reactions to their immersive travel experience via virtual reality, from the conversations started, to memories found and fun experienced.
To be able to deliver this vital piece of technology to the aged residents of Garden Village is a privilege and the bonus is the boost in wellbeing of participants.
Thanks Letitia. Garden Village brought SilVR Adventures to the Village in 2023 thanks to a fundraising campaign and support from local grants.
“We are pleased to engage local lifestyle coordinators to support the VR Armchair Travel Program. The world of smart tech is exciting and we are delighted to embrace innovative tech to best support resident engagement, health and wellbeing,” said Jo McNamara Communications and Community Engagement Manager
Have you experienced the magic of Virtual Reality?
