Digital Health Monitoring and Intervention Suite for Stress in Frontline Nurses: Prospective Cohort Trial

Area of Science:

• Digital Health
• Occupational Health
• Mental Health Interventions

Background:

• Healthcare worker (HCW) stress contributes to burnout and impacts patient care.
• Existing digital tools like virtual reality (VR) and wearables show promise individually.
• No integrated digital suite currently combines stress induction, intervention, and monitoring for HCWs.

Purpose of the Study:

• Evaluate the feasibility, engagement, and preliminary effectiveness of a multimodal Digital Health Monitoring and Intervention suite for Stress.
• Assess the impact of VR simulation and psychoeducation on HCW stress outcomes.
• Examine associations between physiological and self-reported mental health outcomes.

Main Methods:

• A single-arm prospective cohort study enrolled 99 nurses.
• Participants underwent baseline monitoring, a VR session with psychoeducation, and 12-week follow-up.
• Data included in-VR stress measures (SUDS, MIOS-4), heart rate variability, ecological momentary assessments (EMAs), and wearable biometrics.

Main Results:

• VR significantly increased subjective stress, with some emotional responses reported during the session.
• Short-term reductions in anxiety and stress were observed 2 weeks post-intervention but not sustained at 12 weeks.
• High data completion (>90%) and compliance (71%) were achieved; in-VR stress correlated with real-world stress.

Conclusions:

• An integrated digital suite is feasible and shows preliminary effectiveness for HCW stress management.
• The framework demonstrates high engagement, short-term responsiveness, and emotional safety.
• Further randomized controlled trials are needed to establish sustained efficacy and optimize deployment.