(November 12th 2025) Tallaght University Hospital (TUH) is proud to announce the launch of a new Virtual ICU Tour, a pioneering initiative designed to support survivors of critical illness and their families in making sense of their experience in intensive care. Funded through the Adelaide Health Foundation’s New Initiatives Scheme, the project reflects TUH’s strategic commitment to innovation, compassion, and excellence in patient-centred care.
Each year, hundreds of patients are admitted to the Hospital’s Critical Care Service with life-threatening illnesses or injuries. While some spend only a few days in ICU, others remain for weeks or longer. Survivors often report limited or fragmented memories of their time in critical care, with many experiencing distressing hallucinations or delusions due to delirium - a condition affecting up to 80% of ICU patients globally.
In line with the Hospital’s strategy to explore innovative ways of enhancing recovery and wellbeing, The Hospital’s multidisciplinary team identified the need for a resource that could help patients process their experience. The Virtual ICU Tour, now available on the Hospital’s YouTube channel, offers a guided walkthrough of the unit led by ICU staff. It explains the sights, sounds, and sensations patients may have encountered, helping to bridge gaps in memory and aid recovery.
Dr. Melanie Ryberg Clinical Psychologist at TUH, explains: "For many ICU survivors the experience of recovery is not just physically challenging, it is often psychologically overwhelming, with recovery continuing far beyond discharge home. While some patients have no memory of their time in ICU, others remember aspects of their experience, but can have difficulty making sense of those memories. Many patients will remember strange and sometimes very frightening experiences, which often arise as part of delirium, which is very common in ICU. The Virtual Tour offers a safe and supported way to revisit that environment, helping patients make sense of what happened as they continue their recovery journey."
The initiative also benefits families, especially those unable to be present during their loved one’s ICU stay. The video helps demystify the critical care environment, offering insight into the medicalised setting and reducing fear or anxiety associated with it.
Niamh Gavin, CEO of the Adelaide Health Foundation, shared her support: "We are delighted to fund this project through our New Initiatives Scheme. The Virtual ICU Tour exemplifies the kind of compassionate, forward-thinking care we strive to support, one that recognises the emotional and psychological needs of patients and families, not just the clinical ones. It is a powerful example of how TUH is delivering on its strategic vision."
The patient is always at the forefront of any new developments and the team working on this project were most grateful to ICU survivors for giving us some feedback on the content and also feedback on the final production.
“Having spent time in ICU myself, I recall stories from my partner about the frustrations of not knowing what was happening or understanding the terminology. From my own perspective, I can recall the noise of machines and flashbacks of certain pieces of equipment so to see them and understand what role they played in helping me allows me to better understand my experience and enables my partner to understand what was going on, it helps us make sense when we discuss our own experiences too.
Having this available for families during an ICU stay will no doubt provide some comfort and understanding hopefully alleviating some worries and for the patient it will allow them make sense of their experience when they recover”. Ciarán, ICU Survivor.
“The ICU environment is very overwhelming, with machines, noise, bright lights, and continuous activity. This tour of ICU created by TUH is a valuable resource, initially for family members whose loved one is in ICU. When a family member understand the reasons for the life sustaining machines and the various sounds, this can reduce their feelings of helplessness. They can in turn can use this knowledge to ease their loved one's fear and confusion.
When a former ICU patient is ready to view this video I believe it will really help them make sense of what they have been through and potentially, in time, enable them to integrate their ICU stay into their lives. Knowing what to expect after critical illness and where to turn to for further support gives the person some control in their recovery.” Barbara Egan, ICU Survivor and Founder of ICUsteps Dublin.
TUH continues to lead in holistic recovery approaches, and the Virtual ICU Tour is a testament to its commitment to excellence, empathy, and innovation in healthcare. You can view the resource via this link.
