Effect of Virtual Reality Relaxation on Alarm Fatigue and Professional Quality of Life Among Nurses in Intensive Care Units

ABSTRACT Introduction Intensive care unit nurses are faced with a large number of equipment alarms daily, which can increase the likelihood of errors and threaten their professional quality of life. Today, the use of virtual reality to create relaxing experiences in stressful environments has received attention. This study aimed to determine the effect of virtual reality relaxation on alarm fatigue and the professional quality of life among ICU nurses. Methods This is an intervention study with a pretest‐posttest design with a control group. ICU nurses who met the inclusion criteria were selected conveniently and were randomly assigned to two intervention and control groups (30 people in each group). The intervention was implemented as three 20‐min virtual reality relaxation sessions over a week. The data collection tools included the Alarm Fatigue Scale (AFS) and the Professional Quality of Life (ProQOL) questionnaire. The questionnaires were completed before and immediately after the intervention. Results The results showed that the mean AFS score improved significantly after the intervention (p < 0.001), and there was a significant difference between the intervention and control groups (p = 0.014). The mean dimensions of ProQOL also improved significantly in all three dimensions of compassion satisfaction, burnout, and secondary trauma stress after the intervention (p < 0.001). There was a significant difference between two groups in all dimensions after the intervention (p < 0.001). Conclusion The significant improvement in AFS and ProQOL scores indicates that the use of new technologies, such as virtual reality can be considered as a complementary tool in promoting the mental and professional health of nurses in stressful environments.