# Virtual PARTNER (Provide, Activate, Restore, Track, iNspire, Educate, Rehabilitate): Multi-component virtual reality application to target a reduction in delirium in the intensive care unit.

> **NIH NIH R43** · RALPHVR INC. · 2024 · $254,892

## Abstract

Project Summary
Delirium commonly plagues patients in the hospital. Patients in the intensive care unit (ICU) have the highest
risks for delirium, estimated to be between 70% to 80%. The effects of delirium are profound, with higher 12-
month mortality rates following discharge, significant increases in ICU length of stay, duration of mechanical
ventilation, risk of long-term cognitive impairments, and reduced quality of life after discharge. Delirium also
leads to challenges for ICU staff including agitation and combative behavior. There are severe financial costs
from delirium as well, with higher healthcare costs per patient and an additional burden on the American
healthcare system of up to $152 billion each year. These statistics illustrate that an innovative and effective
intervention strategy to prevent delirium in the ICU is highly significant and immediately clinically
impactful. Non-pharmacological multicomponent interventions (which may include patient mobilization,
cognitive stimulation, sleep optimization, and more) have been shown to reduce the odds of incident delirium in
hospitalized non-critically ill patients by approximately half. However, such multicomponent interventions place
an additional burden on the already constrained resources of nursing staff. Technology-based interventions may
be effective intervention delivery mechanisms, but these technology interventions must be multicomponent and
not overburden staff. Crucially, an intervention must be multicomponent, can be tailored to specific patient
characteristics, targets the physical, cognitive, emotional, and social needs of the patient, and does not
overburden nursing staff. RalphVR is applying to this Phase I SBIR to achieve three Specific Aims. Aim 1:
Employ focus groups comprised of staff involved in the treatment of delirium in the ICU (N=12) and former ICU
patients (N=12) for expert, stakeholder, and patient feedback and insight to inform development. Aim 2: Develop
a framework for three innovations and develop three mind body intervention (MBI) components, then combine
these software systems into a single VR application (the Virtual PARTNER prototype). Aim 3: Run a feasibility
study targeting patients in the ICU (N=22). Three long-term objectives must be met to bring Virtual PARTNER
to market: 1) determine the safety and feasibility of Virtual PARTNER to be delivered to patients in the ICU, 2)
determine Virtual PARTNERS’s efficacy to promote target outcomes through successful delivery of MBIs, and
3) determine the efficacy of Virtual PARTNER as an intervention to reduce the occurrence of, and treat, delirium.
Successfully completing the long-term goals and aims will result in a clinically validated intervention to treat
delirium in the ICU. The proposal addresses a gap in current clinical practice and responds to the National Center
for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) program priority area of health promotion, disease
prevention, health restoration, an...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 11007082
- **Project number:** 1R43AT013038-01
- **Recipient organization:** RALPHVR INC.
- **Principal Investigator:** Richard Hoagland
- **Activity code:** R43 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $254,892
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2024-09-17 → 2026-09-14

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/11007082

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 11007082, Virtual PARTNER (Provide, Activate, Restore, Track, iNspire, Educate, Rehabilitate): Multi-component virtual reality application to target a reduction in delirium in the intensive care unit. (1R43AT013038-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/11007082. Licensed CC0.

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