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7th December 2021

New VR training aiding NUS medical students in patient safety

Covid-19 social distancing regulations have led the National University of Singapore to teach patient safety using a VR game

Covid-19 social distancing standards have pushed all medical students at the National University of Singapore to learn patient safety using a virtual reality (VR) game.
The game, dubbed PAtient Safety aS Inter-Professional Training (PASS-IT), will employ virtual reality to familiarise all 1,500 of them with correct operating room procedures. The NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine created it (NUS Medicine).

Medical student teams using VR Reality | SiGMA News
Medical student teams using VR Reality

This digital gaming system, known as the PAtient Safety aS Inter-Professional Training (PASS-IT), allows students to immerse themselves in the operating theatre scenario and learn the entire flow of the peri-operative setting, from dental clearance to anesthesia evaluation, sharps handling during surgery, and the safe conduct of operations.
There are 12 VR stations at the school. Each game is a 15-minute simulation of several medical scenarios in which students must “play out” conventional operating procedures.
Associate Professor Alfred Kow, a surgeon and Assistant Dean (Education) of NUS Medicine and one of the educators spearheading the initiative said “PASS-IT’s gamified style lets multiple learners be immersed in situations where they are given the opportunity to participate in what would usually be a highly restricted environment.
With the COVID-19 situation, students have also been removed from these settings of practical learning due to the risk of exposing them to aerosol-generating procedures. This VR system is a good tool to help the students consolidate their learning despite increased clinical restrictions.”
PASS-IT was created late last year and has been under testing for two months. Students will play the game in the third, fourth, or fifth year, depending on their area of specialisation.
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