Doctors and nurses at a Leicestershire hospital are learning what it feels like to be an elderly patient - by putting on specially designed suits. 

The "older person" suits, which restrict sight, hearing and movement, simulate a 70-year-old in poor health. 

Participants wear a dark visor, ear plugs and a curved back board. 

Unit manager Tracey Gray from the Leicester Royal Infirmary said the suits gave staff a real insight into the way elderly patients were treated. 

Ms Gray said: "We give doctors and nurses the opportunity to wear the suit so that they age within a couple of minutes. 

"They can then feel what it is like to have arthritis, to be deaf or partially sighted, and we given them activities and challenges that they have to achieve whilst wearing the suit with the overall aim of being able to empathise with the patient more." 

Ann Staines, an education and practice development nurse, said she felt intimidated and vulnerable when wearing the suit. 

"I should be able to push my hair back or fiddle with my glasses - but I can't do that and you have to ask people to come and do very basic things for you."