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Veterans of combat in Iraq and Afghanistan have a new resource in northern Illinois to treat post-traumatic stress disorder.

Alexian Brothers Medical Center in Elk Grove Village in January became the first Illinois hospital to receive a virtual reality system called “Virtual Iraq.” The 3-D simulation is a form of virtual reality exposure therapy, a virtual reality approach to conducting prolonged exposure therapy.

“Virtual Iraq” uses a vibrating floor platform, virtual reality goggles, earphones and a machine that emits scents reminiscent of war zones.

By gradually exposing individuals to the sensations that trigger their anxiety, “Virtual Iraq” helps them get used to loud noises and stressful situations and learn to handle them. As a result, symptoms such as insomnia and flashbacks should be reduced. The first step is to identify veterans suffering from PTSD. When a social worker at the Veterans Center at Alexian Brothers Medical Center believes someone might be suffering from PTSD or a traumatic brain injury, the individual will be sent to Nancy Freske, RN, BS, director of program development and executive responder. Freske then will provide assessment tools to determine if the veteran has PTSD or a TBI.

“My job is as case manager for the veterans,” Freske says. “I want to make sure that they (veterans) are seen and evaluated by the team in a timely manner and that they get their therapies also in a timely manner. I don’t want them to worry about this because they have already gone through a lot.”

All of the veterans who are accepted into the program are evaluated by Dr. Patrick McGrath, director of the Anxiety and Excessive Compulsive Disorder Program at Alexian Brothers Behavioral Health Hospital, Dr. Chris D’Agostino, psychiatrist for ABBHH, and Jeffrey Lewine, PhD, director of Alexian Brothers’ Magnetoencephalography Center. McGrath operates the virtual reality system.

“Patrick McGrath is just a genius as far as using the exposure therapy,” Freske says. “He’ll have people on the street, dogs barking.”

Throughout the time patients are using “Virtual Iraq,” McGrath periodically asks what anxiety level he or she is experiencing on a scale of 1 to 10 with the intent of gradually reducing that level as the exposure to stressful situations continues.

On an episode of the “Chicago Tonight” TV program, broadcast in August on WTTW in Chicago, Iraq veteran Michael Pristavec, who suffers from PTSD, was shown using “Virtual Iraq” under McGrath’s guidance. Pristavec was able to see himself and other soldiers, including a gunner, inside a vehicle driving down a road in Iraq.

Pristavec described his anxiety level as being in the 5 range during a scene in daylight, but when McGrath switched to a nighttime scenario, Pristavec said his anxiety was in the eight to 10 range.

Pristavec reported positive results from the simulation experience.

“Mike said, ‘Wow, that’s really helpful,’ ” Freske says.

“In terms of their anxiety level, Patrick is the person who knows how to help them cope with that best.”

Tom Clegg is a member of the editorial team at Nursing Spectrum.

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