An Immersive Virtual Reality Simulation Scenario to Improve Empathy in Nursing Students

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Healthcare Simulation
• Empathy Research

Background:

• Empathy is a critical nursing skill that can decline with professional experience.
• Various methods, including virtual reality (VR), can be used to teach empathy in nursing curricula.
• Understanding how VR impacts empathy development in nursing students is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effect of a short immersive VR simulation on empathy levels in undergraduate nursing students.
• To determine if VR simulation can prevent the decline in empathy scores over time.
• To assess changes in empathy using the Toronto Empathy Questionnaire at multiple time points.

Main Methods:

• A cohort of 110 undergraduate nursing students participated.
• Students completed the Toronto Empathy Questionnaire at baseline (time 1), 2 weeks later (time 2), and several months later (time 3).
• A short immersive VR simulation was integrated into the curriculum between time 1 and time 2.

Main Results:

• No significant increase in Toronto Empathy Questionnaire scores was observed from time 1 to time 2 or from time 1 to time 3.
• Empathy scores remained high and did not decline over the study period.
• No significant differences in empathy scores were found between different measurement times or cohorts.

Conclusions:

• The VR simulation did not enhance empathy scores but may have protected against the natural decline in empathy.
• Empathy training requires sustained immersion throughout nursing education, integrating both didactic and clinical components.
• Further research is needed to explore effective VR strategies for increasing empathy in nursing students.