SimX VR allows for the assessment of clinical competency. In the dynamic healthcare landscape, where patient care demands are constantly evolving, ensuring nurses are equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge is essential to training skilled learners and competent practitioners. Competency-based education (CBE) has long been a cornerstone of nursing education, emphasizing providing learners with the practical skills and theoretical knowledge required for effective patient care. As healthcare becomes increasingly interdisciplinary, there is also a growing recognition of the importance of interprofessional collaboration and education. This HealthySimulation.com article will discuss the impact of SimX VR on nursing competency and IPE. Be sure to visit SimX at INACSL 2024 Booth #301 and SESAM 2024 Booth G-5.
Interprofessional education (IPE) brings together learners from different healthcare disciplines to learn with and from each other while preparing learners for collaborative team practice. When combined with the immersive capabilities of virtual reality (VR) technology, IPE has the potential to revolutionize nursing education and provide learners with realistic and engaging experiences that mimic the complexities of real-world healthcare settings.
In-headset VR simulation training, like that found at SimX, can allow nurse educators to easily and effectively integrate CBE and IPE practices in one immersive simulation training program. In this article, best practices for VR simulation training will be explored to improve competency-based and interprofessional education for nursing students and trainees. Additionally, this article will discuss how one can utilize VR to revolutionize your nursing curriculum and prepare students for licensure, the next-generation NCLEX exam, and real-life patient encounters.
SimX Virtual Reality Medical Simulation System (VRMSS)
The SimX VRMSS is the leading VR medical simulation system on the market. SimX is deeply committed to improving patient safety and enhancing the quality of healthcare through the development and implementation of innovative technology. SimX aims to bridge the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical application by creating immersive and realistic training environments that ensure healthcare professionals are prepared to deliver quality care. The SimX platform allows students to effectively prepare to transition from the classroom to real-world practice across a continuum of nursing education, from prelicensure to post-licensure clinical practice and continuing education.
There are a few key SimX features that make their system specially equipped to deliver quality competency-based and interprofessional education to nursing students worldwide.
- Patented Team Training Technology: Each SimX simulated patient encounter has multiplayer functionality for co-located and non-co-located training groups. This means that SimX is the only patented platform designed for multiple learners to work as a team in the same space. This way, users can train in interprofessional teams, improving communication and collaboration skills.
- Created by Nurses for Nurses: Nurses and nurse educators help create and refine SimX virtual patient encounters from case concept to final release. This clinical presence enables rapid, iterative feedback from those with practical experience in medical simulation.
- Immersive: With SimX, learners can experience realistic patient encounters in the highest-fidelity intuitive environments where learners can talk to, interact with, and treat virtual patients just as they would in real life.
- Flexible: Set up SimX VR scenarios in less than five minutes! Lecture in the front of the room and do simulations in the back; make this part of a small group session, or even train interprofessional teams remotely.
While SimX is not the only VR medical simulation solution out there, SimX is certainly the most innovative, relevant, and accessible for learners across multiple specialties and learning levels.
View the LEARN CE/CME Platform Webinar Above and Beyond Reality: How Air Methods Elevates Critical Care Training with SimX VR to learn more!
How to Improve Competency-Based Training and Interprofessional Education (IPE) with Virtual Reality
1. Set Goals and Learning Outcomes: One of the primary keys of CBE is to create and iterate on measurable learning outcomes. Measurable outcomes are essential to prepare students for comprehensive assessments that require learners to demonstrate specific competencies. By setting goals and learning outcomes before approaching VR simulation training, educators and facilitators can provide a valuable framework for ensuring that nursing graduates are practice-ready.
2. Build Your Curriculum: With SimX, educators can create personalized learning paths for each student to fulfill learning outcomes and gain essential experiential learning through true-to-life virtual patient encounters. Educators can choose from multiple paths to build a VR simulation curriculum, including partnered nursing curricula, the SimX Marketplace, and the SimX Virtual Manikin Series.
- Partnered Curricula: Elsevier has partnered with SimX to build a nursing curriculum that includes a variety of patient encounters where learners must display skill sets from multiple specialties, including pediatrics, psychiatry, maternity, and other fundamentals of care and treatment.
- SimX Marketplace: The SimX Marketplace is an industry-first comprehensive medical scenario marketplace for EMS, nursing, and other clinicians. In the online marketplace, users can search through all cases made available by the SimX team and partnered institutions.
- SimX Virtual Manikin Series: The SimX Virtual Manikin series allows the educator to choose between different patients, diagnoses, and treatment options all in one system. Virtual manikins can be quickly modified and customized to meet the needs of both learners and educators. In real-time, the facilitators can customize and control patient vitals, animations, lab and imaging results, final diagnosis, and much more!
3. Start Training: After setting measurable goals and building your VR curriculum according to personalized learning paths, it’s time to put on the headset! With SimX, learners can set up the system and start training in less than five minutes.
SimX’s multi-player features allow students to run through virtual scenarios in interprofessional teams across any specialty and with variable skill levels. If learners can access a headset, they can join the virtual simulation session from anywhere! Training in teams is essential to further improving competency-based education and gaining vital experience through scenarios that learners may not encounter in traditional learning environments.
4. Integrate VR Into Your Simulation Program: Does the institution already have a trusted and tested simulation curriculum? By integrating VR into your established instruction, the educators can provide students with an accessible way to explore new environments, challenging true-to-life patient encounters, and interprofessional concepts that will prepare them for various real-life team dynamics.
There are many ways to integrate VR into your established simulation program. Here are some ideas based on the direct experiences of actual SimX users.
- Invite remote guest lecturers to guide students through virtual scenarios
- Allow students to directly apply what they learn in the classroom in safe, immersive virtual environments with the SimX Virtual Manikin
- Students run through VR scenarios again and again on their own time to directly apply what they have learned
- Train and invite interprofessional teams of 4-5 learners to run through scenarios together while the rest of the class observes
- Maximize your ability to provide self-assessments and instructor-driven feedback with SimX’s cutting-edge feedback and assessment tools, including debriefing and video recording features
5. Repeat: The best way to build interprofessional skills in competency-based education is to practice again and again. Repeating scenarios with various teams and learning objectives allows nursing students and trainees to experience a variety of patient and team interactions. Using SimX’s built-in assessment and feedback tools for each simulation session also allows interprofessional teams to reflect on their personalized learning outcomes and work toward skill mastery.
The intersection of competency-based education (CBE), interprofessional education (IPE), and virtual reality (VR) technology represents a transformative opportunity in nursing education. As healthcare continuously evolves, the demand for skilled and competent practitioners grows. By leveraging VR technology’s immersive capabilities, educators can provide nursing students with realistic and engaging experiences that bridge the gap between theory and practice.
The SimX Virtual Reality Medical Simulation System (VRMSS) stands out as a leader in this field. Its simulations provide a unique opportunity for students to engage with diverse patient models, mirroring real-world demographics. This not only enhances learners’ clinical skills but also fosters an understanding of social determinants of health, promoting inclusivity and equity in healthcare education.
As educators embrace innovative approaches to personalized learning experiences, they empower the next generation of nurses to prepare for the complexities of real-world patient encounters and excel in an ever-evolving healthcare landscape.
Learn More About SimX and How To Improve Learner Medical Training!
