Imperial College School of Medicine, St Dunstan's Rd, Charing Cross Campus, London, W6 8RP, UK.
Imperial College Faculty of Medicine Digital Education Office, Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London, SW7 2BX, UK.
BMC Med. 2024 Jun 3;22(1):222. doi: 10.1186/s12916-024-03433-9.
It is a requirement that medical students are educated in emergencies and feel well prepared for practice as a doctor, yet national surveys show that many students feel underprepared. Virtual reality (VR), combined with 360-degree filming, provides an immersive, realistic, and interactive simulation experience. Unlike conventional in-person simulation, it is scalable with reduced workforce demands. We sought to compare students' engagement and enjoyment of VR simulation to desktop computer-based simulation.
We conducted a prospective, interventional, evaluation study. The study was carried out on final year medical students undertaking their Pre-Foundation Assistantship (n = 116) at Imperial College School of Medicine (ICSM) in London. We compared objective engagement, subjective engagement, and subjective enjoyment of VR simulation to desktop computer-based simulation using cardiac arrest and life-threatening asthma scenarios. Engagement was measured objectively using students' physiological parameters, including heart rate and eye tracking, and facilitator observations using the validated 'Behavioural Engagement Related to Instruction' (BERI) protocol. Students' subjective engagement and enjoyment levels were measured using a post-session survey.
Students' maximum heart rates were significantly higher during VR simulation with a mean difference of 4.2 beats per minute (3.2 to 5.2, p < 0.001), and eye tracking showed they spent a significantly greater mean percentage of time of 6.4% (5.1 to 7.7, p < 0.001) focusing on the scenarios in VR compared to standard desktop. Qualitative data showed students enjoyed and felt engaged with the sessions, which provided a safe space for learning.
Our study shows that students found VR simulations enjoyable and were more engaged compared to standard desktop simulation. This suggests that 360-degree VR simulation experiences provide students with immersive, realistic training, which is scalable, giving them the unique opportunity to manage emergencies and work within emergency teams, which would not typically occur during traditional training.
医学学生需要接受急救教育，并对作为医生的实践做好充分准备，然而国家调查显示，许多学生感到准备不足。虚拟现实（VR）与 360 度拍摄相结合，提供身临其境、真实和互动的模拟体验。与传统的面对面模拟不同，它可以在减少劳动力需求的情况下进行扩展。我们试图比较学生对 VR 模拟的参与度和享受度与基于桌面的计算机模拟。
我们进行了一项前瞻性、干预性、评估性研究。该研究在伦敦帝国理工学院医学院（ICSM）的最后一年医学生中进行，他们正在进行基础助理实习（n=116）。我们比较了 VR 模拟与基于桌面的计算机模拟在心脏骤停和危及生命的哮喘场景中的客观参与度、主观参与度和主观享受度。使用学生的生理参数（包括心率和眼动追踪）和使用经过验证的“与教学相关的行为参与”（BERI）协议的指导者观察来客观地测量参与度。使用课后调查来衡量学生的主观参与度和享受水平。
学生在 VR 模拟中的最大心率明显更高，平均差异为 4.2 次/分钟（3.2 至 5.2，p<0.001），眼动追踪显示他们在 VR 中观看场景的平均时间比例高 6.4%（5.1 至 7.7，p<0.001）。定性数据显示，学生喜欢并感到参与了课程，这些课程为学习提供了一个安全的空间。
我们的研究表明，与标准桌面模拟相比，学生发现 VR 模拟既有趣又更投入。这表明 360 度 VR 模拟体验为学生提供了身临其境、真实的培训，并且具有可扩展性，使他们有机会管理紧急情况并在紧急团队中工作，这在传统培训中通常不会发生。
