Nurse Assistant Virtual Reality Skills Training Pilot Completed -

Nurse assistant virtual reality skills training provides an immersive experience for students and prepares them for work with patients

The first pilot for the Nursing assistant virtual reality skills training was completed at the end of December. Five long-term care facilities throughout Minnesota participated in the pilot with their NA students. VR simulations provided real-time feedback on critical skills such as personal care, patient positioning, and safety checks. The pilot results showed that VR is valuable for giving feedback and enhancing student learning. Instructors who participated in the pilot found that VR effectively assesses students' understanding of clinical concepts and identifies areas where they need more support. Based on the success of this pilot, plans are being made to expand the program statewide.

The VR nursing assistant skills training program was piloted at five long-term care facilities throughout Minnesota at the end of December 2022. The purpose of the pilot was to test how well the VR program works and whether or not it helps improve student retention of information compared to traditional teaching methods. The results of the pilot were overwhelmingly positive; instructors found that students who participated in the VR training were more engaged and retained more information than those who did not participate. In addition, participants felt that they had better hand-eye coordination and dexterity after completing the VR exercises. The feedback from the pilot participants was used to update and improve the VR skills, and another pilot will be starting at the end of March using the second version of the software using hand tracking. If successful, this new VR training program could be implemented statewide with plans to implement it into state nurse assistant curriculums. With an aging population, there is an increasing demand for quality patient care. Providing nursing assistants access to innovative training tools like virtual reality will help ensure they have the necessary skills to deliver high-quality patient care.

As technology advances, so do methods of instruction and learning opportunities available to nurses and nursing assistants (NA). In response to an industry need to be identified by Minnesota instructors, five long-term care facilities partnered late last year in a statewide nursing assistant VR skill training Pilot Program. This unique opportunity gave participating NA students aged 16 years old and up, many of whom were second language learners, a chance to learn and practice specific tasks within a simulated environment before working directly with residents in their place of employment. Simulation-based learning has been around since the 1970s. It has been used predominately within medical settings to train doctors, surgeons, and other clinical staff members. However, recently, there has been an increased focus on using VR simulations within vocational education designed explicitly as an aid or introduction to task acquisition. Results from this initial phase indicate that participants felt more confident after completing tasks in VR and expressed interest in pursuing additional VR and remote education and training related to the health sciences.

For more information, contact:

Amanda Bell

Nursing Assistant Program Manager

South Central Service Cooperative

abell@mnscsc.org