Immersive Technology Approaches to Cultivate Empathy in U.S. Medical Schools: A Narrative Review (2015-2025)

Empathy is a central component of patient-centered care and is linked to improved clinical outcomes, patient satisfaction, and reduced clinician burnout. Despite its importance, empathy often declines during undergraduate medical education (UME), particularly as students transition into clinical training. Traditional teaching methods have short-lived effects, leading educators to explore more experiential approaches, including immersive learning. This narrative review examines how immersive technologies, such as virtual reality, augmented reality, and mixed reality, are being used to foster empathy in U.S. medical schools. A literature search was conducted across PubMed, OVID MEDLINE, ERIC, Scopus, and Web of Science for studies published between January 1, 2015, and January 1, 2026. Studies were included if they focused on U.S.-based UME and used immersive experiences from patients' perspectives to promote empathy. Seven studies met inclusion criteria. Most used fully immersive virtual reality to place learners in the perspective of patients experiencing conditions such as dementia, terminal illness, or sensory impairments. The studies suggest that immersive virtual reality may foster a sense of embodiment and presence that allows learners to experience illness from a patient's perspective in an emotional and memorable way. While these interventions were generally well received and often described as impactful by learners, most studies relied on small samples, self-reported outcomes, and limited study designs. Only one study demonstrated improvement using a validated empathy measure, and few assessed longer-term effects. Immersive technologies may offer a promising way to help medical students better understand patients' lived experiences. However, stronger evidence is needed to determine whether these approaches lead to lasting changes in empathic behavior. Future research should focus on rigorous study design, consistent outcome measures, and integration of immersive tools into longitudinal medical curricula.