Nurse Practitioner VR Tool

A tool for student Nurse Practitioners to practice communication and clinical decision-making skills.

Background

In healthcare, nurse-patient interaction is of paramount importance. Student Nurse Practitioners’ understanding of theoretical concepts could be improved with a tool that models clinical decision-making through automation. Through virtual reality (VR) technology, students will be able to participate in realistic learning experiences and enhance their communication and clinical skills in a safe and controlled environment.

Objective

The previous project aimed to develop a VR application that utilizes Large Language Learning Models (LLM), and realistic 3D modeling/animation techniques to create an immersive learning experience where student Nurse Practitioners can engage in interactive consultations with virtual patient avatars, all the while mitigating real-world instructional hazards.

The avatars will exhibit and describe real signs and symptoms, allowing students to practice their clinical skills in various simulated patient care situations. Current plans for this project include: expanding the number of practice scenarios, implementing a detailed feedback system for users, and improving meta-human interactions. Ultimately, it is hoped that integrating VR technology into pedagogical practices used in nursing programs will aid students’ transition from fragmented textual knowledge to competency-oriented application.

Impact

This project has both a user impact and a pedagogical impact. It allows nursing students and Nurse Practitioners to gain practice with gathering a focused history and giving counseling to a patient, while also going beyond the limitations of existing web-based programs by integrating emerging technologies such as VR and AI into the education of NPs.

Format

The project is in the ideation and testing stage; tools and formats are subject to change. The current plan seeks to use Metahuman Creator as well as Unreal Engine 5.2 or 5.3.

Photo by CDC on Unsplash