An interventional study of Psychological intervention in Older Adults Institutionalized in Residential Homes, sponsored by Tung Wah College. Not yet recruiting. Open to participants aged 60 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-10-19.
Sponsored by Tung Wah College · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment
This project will evaluate how well the immersive virtual reality psychological program works in residential care homes and how it can be used in everyday practice. We will test its effects on mood, well-being, social connection, and related outcomes, while also examining what helps or hinders delivery in real-world settings, including any adaptations needed to make routine use feasible.
It is needed to close the gap between success shown in controlled research and the realities of daily care, where staffing, management support, and diverse resident needs can affect results. By studying effectiveness and implementation together, we can learn whether the program works across different homes and how to sustain it over time.
Residents may benefit through improved mood, well-being, and feelings of social support. Care homes may gain an engaging, adaptable activity that fits limited mobility and sensory needs, and the broader community and policymakers may receive practical guidance to implement, scale, and maintain an evidence-based mental health program for older adults in residential care.
This study uses a Type 1 hybrid effectiveness-implementation design with a single-blind, two-arm, three-matched-pair cluster randomized controlled trial (cRCT) and mixed-methods evaluation. Residential homes serve as clusters to minimize contamination, improve efficiency, and enhance real-world applicability. The trial follows SPIRIT guidelines and will recruit 400 participants from six residential homes in Sichuan Province, China.
Homes will be matched and randomized to intervention or usual care. Written informed consent will be obtained after full explanation of procedures, risks, and benefits, following ethics approval and the Declaration of Helsinki.
Intervention and Procedures
Intervention (IVRPP): 12 sessions (\~60 minutes each) delivered twice weekly over 6 weeks by trained college student volunteers. Each session includes \~10 min briefing, \~30 min immersive VR (Natural Scenes, Tourism, or Reminiscence via Oculus Quest 2), and \~10 min debrief. Sessions occur in small groups (2-3 participants) with nurse oversight and real-time tablet monitoring. Safety protocols include seated positioning and 10-minute postsession observation for VR sickness.
Control: Usual care only.
Justification: The program integrates evidence-based immersive VR with intergenerational support to improve mental well-being in a scalable, low-resource format suitable for residential care.
Assessments (T0: baseline, T1: post-intervention, T2: 3-month follow-up):
Implementation evaluation (RE-AIM framework): Quantitative indicators (recruitment, fidelity, retention) plus semi-structured interviews with staff/leaders (\~30-45 min) and participant exit interviews (\~10-20 min).
Data Analysis Quantitative: Data will be analyzed using descriptive statistics and generalized estimating equations (GEE) Qualitative: Thematic analysis of interview transcripts. Mixed-methods triangulation will link effectiveness and implementation findings.
Roles and Timeline
Timeline (approx. 9-18 months total):
This pragmatic design rigorously evaluates both effectiveness and real-world implementability while keeping participant burden low.
1,045 studies on the registry are indexed under Psychological Well-Being; 509 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 400 is above the median of 113 across 888 interventional studies indexed under Psychological Well-Being.
Browse Psychological Well-Being studies →Tung Wah College is the lead sponsor of 17 studies on the registry; 9 are open to participants now.
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Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.
Exclusion Criteria:
Immersive Virtual Reality (Natural Scenes, Tourism, or Reminiscence via Oculus Quest 2)
Other: Psychological intervention
Usual care
Intervention (IVRPP): 12 sessions (\~60 minutes each) delivered twice weekly over 6 weeks by trained college student volunteers. Each session includes \~10 min briefing, \~30 min immersive VR (Natural Scenes, Tourism, or Reminiscence via Oculus Quest 2), and \~10 min debrief. Sessions occur in small groups (2-3 participants) with nurse oversight and real-time tablet monitoring. Safety protocols include seated positioning and 10-minute post-session observation for VR sickness.
GAD-7
Depression
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of intervention and three-month follow-up
PHQ-9
Anxiety
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of intervention and three-month follow-up
World Health Organization-Five Well-Being Index (WHO-5)
Well-being
Time frame: From enrolment to the end of intervention and three-month follow-up
Curiosity Scale
Curiosity
Time frame: From enrolment to the end of intervention and three-month follow-up
Loneliness Scale
Loneliness
Time frame: From enrolment to the end of intervention and three-month follow-up
Thinking About Life Experiences (TALE) Reminiscence
Reminiscence
Time frame: From enrolment to the end of intervention and three-month follow-up
EuroQol 5-Dimension 5-Level questionnaire (EQ-5D-5L)
Quality of Life
Time frame: From enrolment to the end of intervention and three-month follow-up
No study locations are listed for this record.
Documents are hosted by the registry — open the source record to download them.
Plan to share: No — Participant Privacy \& the Lack of Ethics Committee Approval for IPD sharing
From the registry record's own update history. This site started tracking changes on Sep 25, 2026; for anything earlier, see the record history on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
This study is not yet recruiting, as verified in Oct 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.
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Tung Wah College