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Identifying oncology caregivers' pretreatment educational and emotional needs to inform future virtual reality
Susan D Birkhoff1, Heidi Donovan, Young Ji Lee
1At the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing in Pittsburgh, Pa., Susan Birkhoff was a postdoctoral student, Young Lee is an associate professor, and Heidi Donovan is a professor.
Purpose:
To identify oncology caregivers' unmet educational needs for the development of a virtual reality experience.
Methods:
A qualitative descriptive methodology was used; data were collected via online surveys.
Results:
Eighteen participants said their educational experiences were overwhelming and emotionally exhausting. They suggested a need to deliver educational information through different modalities and provide more clinician-based resources and support.
Conclusion:
This study identified opportunities to complement traditional pretreatment education tailored to the caregivers' needs and experiences, such as specific procedural information and emotional management while being a caregiver. Creating virtual reality experiences exclusively for oncology caregivers is a novel nurse-led approach that is currently not in existence.
