Ground-breaking VR rehab project for people with MS in line for big digital award

A virtual reality (VR) games rehabilitation project that’s transforming the lives of people with multiple sclerosis (MS) in Scotland has been shortlisted for a prestigious digital innovation award.

The project - run by Professor Lorna Paul, Dr Elaine Coulter, Dr Amy Webster and PhD student Hannah Milne, from Glasgow Caledonian, Glasgow School of Art’s Dr Matthieu Poyade, in partnership with the MS Society – is up for the ALLIANCE Self Management Awards - Digital Innovator Award.

The awards, organised by the Health and Social Care Alliance (the ALLIANCE), present annual accolades in recognition and celebration of the achievements of people and projects that have contributed the most to self-management of health conditions in Scotland over the past year.

“We’re thrilled to be recognised for work that’s already making a difference,” said Professor Lorna Paul, who leads Glasgow Caledonian University’s MS Doctoral Training Centre. “We’re grateful to the MS Society, our partners, and the incredible individuals with MS who continue to support and shape our research.

“People with MS need life-long rehabilitation and VR provides an opportunity for a fun and motivating way to do rehabilitation. Rather than ‘off the shelf’ VR games, Amy and Hannah have developed bespoke games for people with MS for use at home so people with MS can self-manage their condition in a fun way,” she added.

The ALLIANCE shortlisted the project for the award because they were impressed by the innovative work being carried out and after watching a special feature on STV’s flagship Scotland Tonight programme about how the VR games are changing the lives of people with MS.

The VR games the team developed, with input from people living with MS, include playing a virtual piano, whack-a-mole and catch-a-falling-star. They're designed to be fun and engaging. Participant Lauren Forrester, 39, from Lanarkshire, who appeared in the Scotland Tonight report, Hope in the Battle Against MS, called the VR project “a game-changer.”

Scotland has the highest rates of MS in the world, with over 15,000 people living with the condition. The VR project is one of several cutting-edge research initiatives at Glasgow Caledonian University’s MS Doctoral Training Centre, focused on novel approaches to symptom management.

The winners of the Self Management Awards 2025 will be announced during Self Management Week, which runs from September 22 to 25, 2025.