Perceived Impact of Virtual Reality-Based Education for History-Taking and Physical Examination Skills among...

Around the world, the presence of international medical graduates (IMGs) continues to grow. However, IMGs in Japan may face challenges in developing history-taking and physical examination (H&P) skills in Japanese. Although virtual reality (VR) offers potential for experiential, self-paced, and repeatable learning, its application to H&P skills among IMGs is underexamined. Here, we explored the effectiveness of VR-based education in fostering H&P skills among IMGs in Japan.

We conducted a feasible one-group pretest-posttest study with IMGs enrolled in the International Medical Practitioners Education Program in Japan. From August to September 2025, the participants undertook a 1-month VR-based program using "VR for Objective Structured Clinical Examination." Assessments were conducted pre- and post-intervention. The questionnaire included: (1) the Japanese version of the Usefulness, Satisfaction, and Ease of Use Questionnaire-Lite (J-USE-Lite; post) (2) confidence in H&P skills and motivation to learn them in Japanese (pre and post), and (3) free-text questions exploring perceived learning outcomes and culture-specific insights (pre and post). Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and paired t-tests, while qualitative data were analyzed by inductive content analysis.

The first 15 individuals who applied to participate in this study were enrolled. Mean J-USE-Lite score was 5.13/7. We found notable positive trends in confidence in H&P skills and motivation to learn them in Japanese. In qualitative analysis, while the pre-intervention questionnaire indicated challenges for IMGs in developing H&P skills in Japanese, the post-intervention questionnaire suggested perceived gains in H&P skill acquisition and culture-specific learning, such as patient-centered considerations.

A 1-month, VR-based education program demonstrated good usability and appeared to enhance confidence and motivation to learn H&P skills among IMGs. Immersive and repeatable VR experiences may support practical skill acquisition and adaptation to Japan's clinical and cultural context. Confirmation in larger samples from diverse backgrounds using objective performance measures is warranted.