We have recently seen a rise in the amount of immersive content that’s being licensed from our library for campaigns and projects within the health industry, and as more companies within this space experiment with this content we are seeing stats emerge which confirm that immersive experiences are having positive effects on patients within areas such as palliative care, distraction therapy and pain management. A recent study by Cedars-Sinai Research found that patients experienced a 24% reduction in pain after only 10 minutes of using a special visualisation.

We are also seeing immersive content used within the wellness space to help destress, relax and revitalise employees working in stressful environments, patients leading up to operations, and students during busy study periods.

Our content library, which currently holds over 15,000 360° videos, is being used by a number of companies within the health and wellbeing space including Manzlab VR Medical who are using 360 content to distract volunteers whilst they donate blood at medical centres throughout France, Relax VR who are licensing our content to help companies provide stress relieving solutions for staff, and Rescape who are using our immersive experiences to distract patients whilst they undergo different treatments.

Rescape have licensed a number of our 360 videos and are including them in a new VR solution that they have created as a distraction tool for patients undergoing treatment. The solution, named DR.VR was trialled with Llandough Hospital in the Vale of Glamorgan for distraction therapy during cystic fibrosis treatment. The results from the trial were overwhelmingly positive, finding that when patients were experiencing our content within DR.VR the average reduction of stress/anxiety was 75%, and the average reduction of pain amongst patients was a staggering 37.5%.

Dr Jamie Duckers of Llandough Hospital, said: “Cystic fibrosis is an illness that requires a lot of time consuming and isolating treatment, which often impacts the patient’s anxiety levels and ability to cope. By having the opportunity to break up the monotony and strain of treatment through immersive VR content, patients have been able to momentarily escape the hardship of dealing with the treatments of the disease and have reported impressive reductions in pain and anxiety levels and I can see virtual reality distraction therapy being a useful adjunct in treatment”.

Glenn Hapgood, Head of Innovation and Product Development at Rescape Innovation, said: “There is a lot of evidence to suggest that VR and 360 video can be used to improve the patient experience, reduce stress, anxiety, and pain, but until now the high cost and complex technology has prevented mass adoption. We are excited to launch this new project which will help to tap into this market and potentially drive some significant benefits for patients. Blend Media was the go-to-choice of partner as they are able to offer affordable, extensive and engaging content that can be easily used in headsets".

The most popular 360 videos from our library within the health and wellness sphere include tropical beaches, waterfalls and babbling brooks, aerial views of rainforests and mountain ranges, and deep sea dives. You can take a look at some of these under our 360° Health and Wellbeing playlist on YouTube https://goo.gl/7tfxnU. Check out one of our favourites below where you can experience in 360 what it's like to swim with turtles.

We also offer a tool which gives you the ability to create interactive experiences out of our immersive content, giving 360 content an extra layer and allowing you to take users on a 360 journey by telling them a story. Here’s an example of a piece of 360 content that has been created with a set of instructions to help viewers to relax and destress.

If you’d like to find out more about Blend Media’s offering or you have any questions get in touch with our Licensing and Partnerships VP, Lee Owen, by emailing lee@blend.media