vrClinicals is built on evidence-based scenarios authored by the National League for Nursing ( NLN ) that simulate a realistic hospital environment , including challenging elements such as multiple patient scenarios and interruptions to better prepare students in delivering quality patient care .

Limitations that impact real-life clinical training for nursing students have opened the door for safe , resourceeffective training modalities , such as VR , that offer a greater breadth of experiences . Students using vrClinicals for Nursing with a Meta Quest 2 headset will be immersed in an authentic , virtual clinical environment where they must navigate real challenges nurses encounter on the job – such as prioritising multiple patients with varied , complex cases , interruptions from colleagues or patient requests .

Leila Casteel , DNP , APRN , NP-C , Associate Vice President , Curriculum & Innovation at Herzing University , said : “ The vrClinicals for Nursing solution offers just the right amount of urgency that students need to hit the ground running once they enter clinical practice . It prepares students to think critically and hone their prioritisation skills across multiple , diverse patients and clinical scenarios , which mirrors the day-to-day unpredictability of nursing .”

Nursing shortage puts pressure on new nurses

Newly licensed nurses are increasingly managing higher patient caseloads and must refine their independent clinical judgement earlier in their careers , especially with the impacts of the current nursing shortage . To better prepare today ’ s nursing students for this environment with a backdrop of limited clinical opportunities , educational tools using Metaverserelated technologies can provide a broad range of experiences that reflect the expectations of real-world practice .

“ vrClinicals for Nursing allows students to benefit from clinical training in a controlled environment where they can safely make and learn from their mistakes ,” said Julie Stegman , Vice

President , Nursing Segment , Health Learning , Research & Practice at Wolters Kluwer , Health . “ This experiential learning fosters in-the-moment decisionmaking that allows students to react and reflect on the decisions they ’ ve made in multiple , complex care scenarios . Developing this skillset early is essential to ensuring nurses feel confident as they onboard while shortening their ramp-up for clinical practice .”

Promoting clinical preparedness with virtual reality

With fewer on-site educational opportunities available , VR technology is meeting the need for realistic , experiential learning for student nurses that allows them to receive real-time feedback in a hospital setting , without putting patients at risk . �

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