The University of Texas at Austin School of Nursing’s Amanda Marshall, activities coordinator for the Simulation & Skills Center (SSC), and Jonathan Spear, administrative program coordinator for the SSC, had their abstract “Virtual Reality (VR) Open Lab Program: Logistics & Lessons Learned” accepted for a workshop presentation for the 25th International Meeting on Simulation in Healthcare (IMSH), Jan. 10-14, 2025, in Orlando, Florida.
Marshall and Spear have successfully implemented the use of VR open lab in the UT Austin School of Nursing’s SSC.
“Here at our cutting-edge educational facility, we offer nursing students realistic and simulated learning experiences,” Marshall said. “Through these simulations, students develop psychomotor, physical assessment and critical thinking skills essential for clinical performance. They also receive hands-on practice with various equipment and techniques that are crucial for their future practice through high repetition, self-paced, and guided VR open lab sessions. This is much like any other hands-on skill students learn while at the School of Nursing.”
Spear said that the use of VR open lab to increase the productivity of students in VR simulations is an innovative approach that has shown promising results. By providing students with access to open lab sessions, they can enhance their efficacy in using VR tools, particularly in high-stakes simulations.
“Our presentation will give attendees the knowledge and practices needed to implement VR open labs in their own educational centers,” he said. “We feel this knowledge can benefit simulation labs at other institutions.”
IMSH is a scientific conference hosted by the Society for Simulation in Healthcare that explores the latest innovations and best practices in health care simulation. IMSH provides the tools and resources health care professionals need to advance their skills, impact change in delivery systems and practice and improve patient safety.