Improving Mental health therapy Provision, Research & Outcomes via Virtual Environments (IMPROVE)

One in six UK adults are affected by a mental health disorder (ranging from phobias to psychosis), but most do not receive treatment (NHS Digital 2016). People who do receive treatment are more likely to be given general medication rather than a targeted and personalised psychological intervention. Yet, for many common mental health conditions, particularly anxiety disorders, patients prefer evidence-based psychological treatments, which are also shown to have the best outcomes. Numerous studies have demonstrated the benefits of virtual reality for a range of mental health conditions such as anxiety disorders. However, there is currently no method to remotely monitor patients' progress to ensure safety. Emteq Ltd is developing a biosensing VR mobile headset and associated software to enable real-time feedback on performance, adaptive treatments based on personalised individual characteristics. Patients will be able to access a range of personalised treatments from the comfort of their own homes. This will have the benefit of allowing clinic-based therapists to oversee the treatment of multiple users simultaneously via software dashboards. Furthermore, this solution will enable scarce resources of in-person visits with therapists to be focussed on those with the greatest need, or who are unsuitable for a technology-enabled solution.