title: Using virtual reality in clinical practice: A multi-site exploratory study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Virtual reality (VR) is a relatively new treatment tool with emerging evidence supporting its use in neurorehabilitation, although no information exists about how therapists use VR clinically.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This study's purpose was to document current practice in GestureTek VR use for inpatient acquired brain injury (ABI) rehabilitation as a benchmark for clinicians integrating the approach into practice, and to inform future research to improve its clinical applicability.
  
  
  METHODS
  As part of a larger study examining barriers and facilitators to VR use, participating therapists at two rehabilitation centres documented descriptive data about client demographics and VR treatment programme characteristics for 29 ABI clients on their caseloads over eight months.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Differences between the clinical population and published research samples were apparent. Treatment characteristics and several outcomes of interest paralleled those in the literature; however, novel outcome areas were identified as research gaps. By study's end, more than half of clients' VR programmes had been discontinued, for reasons consistent with documented barriers to VR use.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These findings can help bridge the knowledge-to-action gap by informing the design of research that has high clinical relevance, and by providing a point of reference for clinicians incorporating VR into their practices.
authors.affiliation: Sunny Hill Health Centre for Children, Vancouver, BC, Canada Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
authors.forename: Stephanie M N
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Glegg
authors.affiliation: Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
authors.forename: Liisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Holsti
authors.affiliation: Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
authors.forename: Sue
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Stanton
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Epidemiology & Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.
authors.forename: Steven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hanna
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences, DeGroote School of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.
authors.forename: Diana
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Velikonja
authors.affiliation: Hamilton Health Sciences, Hamilton, ON, Canada.
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Ansley
authors.affiliation: Hamilton Health Sciences, Hamilton, ON, Canada.
authors.forename: Denise
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Sartor
authors.affiliation: Hamilton Health Sciences, Hamilton, ON, Canada.
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Brum
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D002648:Child; D003196:Computer Graphics; D006801:Humans; D015588:Observer Variation; D009788:Occupational Therapy; D059825:Physical Therapists; D026741:Physical Therapy Modalities; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014584:User-Computer Interface
keywords: Brain injury; GestureTek; clinical applicability; rehabilitation; virtual reality