Orygen Digital

Virtual reality

Orygen Digital’s work in youth mental health research, early intervention and clinical care is revealing the potential of virtual reality (VR) to help young people struggling with mental health challenges.

Our world-first research uses the latest innovative VR technologies to bridge the gap between the real world and the clinician’s room to help young people feel empowered to better manage their mental health.

how vr can help youth mental health

Virtual reality is an exciting technology that has potential to change the way youth mental ill-health is treated. Our vision is to make VR part of routine care for all young people being treated for mental ill-health.

In VR, users wear a headset which projects them into a completely immersive environment that feels and looks just like the real world. Using hand controllers, users can move around and interact with objects and other users or characters in real time.

During the past decade, there has been increasing evidence that interventions delivered via VR can be highly effective for a range of mental health conditions.

Recognising the promise of this highly innovative area, we've invested in the development of a dedicated VR lab and a new research stream to explore how VR can improve the quality and reach of youth mental health care.

Our aim is to improve the quality and reach of youth mental health care by harnessing cutting-edge developments in VR.

our virtual reality research program

Virtual reality research at Orygen Digital is centred on three key areas where VR holds potential to improve treatments for young people experiencing mental ill-health. These include:

• Transforming telehealth with virtual worlds,
• Re-imagining therapy using gamefied VR tools, and 
• Empowering social recovery through immersive VR environments.

Learn more about our virtual reality program in the following pages.

Want to partner with us?

The continuation of our work is dependent on the support of donors and partners who share Orygen Digital’s belief in the very real potential of VR to support youth mental health.

With support from partners, we can continue this vital area of research into VR treatments and services for the young people who need our help.

To find our more about our VR program or explore partnership opportunities:

Get in touch