A Case Study Using Virtual Reality to Prime Knowledge for Procedural Medical Training

Paul W. L. Watson, Samuel House, Robert Hart, Jonathan Abbas, Sheena Asthana, Swen E. Gaudl

Abstract: Procedural training within medical education relies heavily on skill practice. This training requires developing a cognitive understanding of a procedure to prime learners before motor skill trials. With the high demand and costs of specialist equipment, virtual reality (VR) is poised to provide accessible content to develop cognitive understanding, and bridge the gap between knowledge and practice outside of dedicated training centres. Previous work in this field has focused on knowledge transfer, which is important yet insufficient to understand the interplay of instruction, usability, presence, and experience. All of which could impact learning outcomes and frequency of use. To have a more nuanced view of VR medical training beyond its knowledge transfer capability, we integrate HCI & games perspectives into our evaluation approach appraising the VR Bronchoscope Assembly (VR-Bronch) training.