Porters at a North East NHS trust recently had the opportunity to view the world through the eyes of their elderly patients living with conditions such as frailty and dementia.

The opportunity was presented to them by Northumbria Healthcare’s Enhanced Care for Older People (EnCOP) initiative that began in July 2022.

The initiative launched virtual reality (VR) training sessions for non-clinical staff members, who play integral roles in patient care.

VR headsets were used to mimic the visual conditions that patients with differing stages of frailty and dementia might experience.

Clare Collins, pharmacy technician and EnCOP educator community lead, said: "Sessions like this are a great opportunity for us to work with our colleagues on the ground to understand the patient experience.

"It’s very exciting to be able to extend the work that our EnCOP team does to non-clinical staff who already provide such brilliant support to patients.

"Supporting staff to improve the all-round experience is at the heart of everything we do within EnCOP and the trust in general."

Charlene Sturgeon, head porter at Wansbeck General Hospital, described the VR experience as "eye-opening", enhancing their understanding of patients' challenges and giving them the tools to improve the experiences of patients on the ward.