Virtual tour lets families walk round Poole neonatal unit

A 3D virtual tour of Poole Hospital neonatal unit is available on the University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust website and can either be watched in one go or navigated at the user’s own pace. Information tags have been added to explain the different areas of the neonatal unit and the equipment to help with familiarisation of the clinical area.

Lucy Fairbrass, deputy sister for the unit, said: “Within the tour they will see the layout of the unit and can hear typical sounds of the clinical environment. There are informational tags that identify medical equipment used, areas parents would access frequently and facilities available for families if they have a baby on the neonatal unit.

“We hope the tour will help potential families prepare and know a little more about what to expect if their baby needs specialist care from our team at Poole. Our hope is that this will help families to visualise where their baby will be cared for, reduce uncertainty and therefore increase the family's wellbeing.”

You can watch the Poole tour here.

The tours can also be used by families whose children were cared for previously in the unit and were produced in collaboration with the Thames Valley and Wessex Neonatal Partnership, which is working towards having tours of all 14 units in region. See more here.