New Position Paper by Oxford VR, 'The Big Reset', Highlights How COVID-19 Has Created a Blue Moon Moment

OXFORD, England, April 30, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --

• Perspectives from US and UK thought leaders in advanced technologies, behavioral and public health on the central challenges and opportunities facing this important ecosystem.
• White paper can be downloaded at www.ovrhealth.com/the_big_reset/ and support video is also available at https://vimeo.com/413473176

Oxford VR, a pioneer in evidence-based automated VR therapy has published a new position paper 'The Big Reset: Why COVID-19 presents a blue moon moment for mental health technology.

Contributors include Walter Greenleaf, Behavioral Neuroscientist, and Medical Technology Developer, Stanford University, Skip Rizzo, Director for Medical VR at The University of Southern California's Institute for Creative Technologies, Matt Vogl, Executive Director at National Mental Health Innovation Center, David Kessler, Professor of Primary Care, Bristol University, Sam Nordberg, Chief of Behavioral Health at Reliant Medical Group and Brett Atwood, VP, Ventures at United Health Group R&D.

The psychological and social effects of the pandemic are pervasive. Walter Greenleaf, a behavioral neuroscientist and a medical technology developer working at Stanford University, agrees, "It would be easier to list those that don't need help right now."

The paper highlights how the coronavirus crisis has been a greater catalyst for the implementation of telecare in practice, than two decades of many brilliant, but many failed attempts too. According to Barnaby Perks, Co-founding CEO of Oxford VR, "For those individuals struggling with a mental health illness, this advance cannot come sooner." As virtual care becomes the new normal, this paper examines the challenges and opportunities for disruptive technologies in mental health delivery to ensure that adoption is sustained long after the immediate aftershocks.

The paper emphasizes how because acceleration and adoption of new technologies is happening at an unprecedented pace that the regulatory system will need to keep pace to ensure it become easier to navigate, and the approval process for new devices and therapies should become less time- and resource-intensive and ensure evidence-based solutions. As Matt Vogl pointed out "We don't want it to become the wild west. No rules is just as bad as too many rules."

Oxford VR is a world-leading, frontier technology business and spin-out from Oxford University using powerful automated immersive technology to create a better mental health treatment experience, so that millions more people can have access to high quality treatment and take outcomes to a new level.

About Oxford VR:

• Oxford VR (OVR) is a global pioneer developing automated VR therapy. A spin-out from Oxford University, OVR's work builds on two decades of groundbreaking clinical research by Daniel Freeman, Professor of Clinical Psychology at Oxford University Department of Psychiatry and co-founder of OVR.
• OVR is committed to developing evidence-based, cost-effective and scalable solutions that build mental healthcare capacity using cutting-edge VR technology.
• OVR's automated VR therapy translates evidence-based cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) through immersive virtual reality environments to provide powerful new evidence-based psychological treatments.
• Oxford VR's first clinical trial for fear of heights, which was published in The Lancet Psychiatry, shows how automated VR therapy can produce large clinical benefits. Results achieved were significantly better than expected, with the best psychological intervention delivered face-to-face by a therapist. This landmark trial also demonstrated automated VR therapy's capacity to transform mental healthcare by helping overloaded providers to expand access and standardize clinical excellence, ensuring adherence to treatment protocols.
• Mental health problems are inseparable from the environment. In VR therapy, individuals put on a headset and enter VR simulations of the situations and environments that trigger their symptoms. Throughout their treatment, individuals are asked to complete several different tasks that are graded in difficulty and are coached on helpful responses. The VR environments give people reassurance they can try out new things safely and that they're not in any real danger. The great thing about VR therapy is that the behavioural changes made in the VR environment transfer to the real world.
• Because VR therapy is automated, prized therapists can be redeployed to more urgent cases or other aspects of care.
• In February 2020, OVR announced a $12.5 million investment - a record for VR therapy investment in Europe to advance its real-world impact in behavioral health, and accelerate clinical leadership in the U.S.

For further information please contact:

Rachel Dalton, PR Consultant
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SOURCE Oxford VR