Summary:

While Dr. Liz Oviawe from Nova Southeastern University (NSU) was the featured guest in an insightful video interview that will be shared soon (detailing her innovative work at NSU), this particular Simulation Pulse segment captures her impromptu visit to our weekly open office hours. During this welcome drop-in, Dr. Oviawe, a long-time collaborator who has consistently been at the forefront of using VR in healthcare education, shared several key updates, beginning with a newly published research article. This study looked at EKG lead placement and found that using Acadicus helped students improve their understanding, engagement, and confidence. Such data-backed findings are important for the simulation community as they demonstrate the effectiveness of VR tools in building essential clinical skills.

The conversation also sheds light on NSU’s proactive and innovative spirit: Dr. Oviawe’s students are now developing their own custom scenarios directly within the Acadicus platform. This is a great example of how a flexible VR environment can empower users to create tailored content that fits their specific curriculum needs. This student-led initiative, already IRB approved, is about to start live piloting, which speaks to the platform’s utility for real-world application and data gathering.

Further highlighting the practical benefits of Acadicus, Dr. Oviawe discusses an award NSU received for their use of the platform in teaching physiology. They saw a significant 27% increase in student pass rates for a challenging topic after integrating Acadicus. This illustrates how versatile VR can be, extending beyond typical clinical simulations to become an engaging lecture tool – a practical alternative to traditional methods.

Dr. Oviawe also touches on their pioneering USDA grant project, which uses Acadicus for distance learning and telehealth training in rural areas, helping to address important workforce development needs. Looking forward, NSU plans to make immersive Acadicus lab experiences a mandatory part of more courses, building on its interactive capabilities. While the potential for future AI integration is a point of interest, the episode really celebrates the substantial, measurable results being achieved with Acadicus as it is today, showing its value as a transformative and practical solution for healthcare education. The discussion wraps up by reflecting on how these real-world applications and published successes are vital for validating VR’s expanding role in the field.

Episode Highlights:

Published Research Validates VR Effectiveness (EKG Study):

Dr. Liz announced a newly published EKG study, highlighting its positive findings:

• Dr. Liz: “…we published an article and we we show that we use a [Acadicus]… my student actually focus on ekg for this time being and they kind of evaluated so i published an article with her… even if you search ekg something with your catacles from with nova i think it should pop up…”

• Jon (reading findings): “findings indicated that most participants found the vr tool effectively enhanced their understanding and engagement with the clinical procedure… positive impact of vr technology on students confidence level…”

  • This research underscores the platform’s proven effectiveness in enhancing student understanding and boosting confidence in clinical procedures.

Student-Driven Content Creation & Platform Customization:

Dr. Liz shared how her students are actively developing their own educational content within Acadicus:

• Dr. Liz: “…i have another four set of students that will be developing content… we are now moving into the development part and we’ve actually gone into acadicus and develop our own content within acadicus… i trained one of them that is very um computer savvy on the design how to design within a cateus and sean really helped so and uh so he was able to do it himself then the other three students kind of they wrote their own scenario…”

  • This showcases the flexibility and customization capabilities of Acadicus, empowering both educators and students to tailor learning experiences.

Award-Winning Application & Dramatic Improvement in Student Outcomes (Physiology):

The episode highlighted an award NSU received for using Acadicus in physiology, leading to a significant impact on student success:

• Dr. Liz: “we actually won an award… for using a cateus… we use a cateus to teach physiology… we won an award… the reason why we won the lab was like the for the from previous year they were failing this particular topic but after we did the vr aspect of it it jumped their their performance and the passing rate jumped to 27% wow wow wow so so that was why that was why we won the award…”

  • This demonstrates the measurable impact of VR in education, improving student outcomes and showcasing the platform’s versatility beyond traditional clinical skills training.

Acadicus as an Innovative Classroom Lecture Tool:

The discussion touched upon using Acadicus as an interactive alternative to traditional lectures:

• Jon: “…using it in the classroom as a lecture tool as you described that’s something bill ballow… he’s been preaching that for so long now… it’s like a powerpoint killer right like it’s so much better than watching a powerpoint…”

• Bill: “yeah that’s the way i started with it i i looked at it sort of as a as a lecture tool uh initially… trying to encourage my faculty to use it more and more as a uh as a lecture tool and not just look at it as a clinical tool…”

  • This points to innovative teaching methods and increased student engagement through the broad applicability of VR in various educational settings.

USDA Grant: Expanding Reach to Rural Areas & Telehealth Training:

Dr. Liz explained how Acadicus is being used in a USDA grant project:

• Dr. Liz: “…the idea for this project came because of covid… we can use our cate to develop an immersive experience and the preceptor and the student can be in there… we develop um um the contents to serve our student in the rural area so we went to those rural areas and we set up… the lab for them and the students our students you know during their time… they go into the headsets and then the preceptor will be in their own room… and then they’ll do the training right there…”

  • This highlights how Acadicus can address workforce shortages and support distance learning, particularly for telehealth applications in underserved areas.

The Value of Early Adoption & Long-Term Partnerships:

Jon recounted the early days of collaborating with Dr. Liz:

• Jon: “…i met you when we were demonstrating the airway lab project at this would have been 2018 imsh… you sat down and you just knew right away you were like ‘this is it.’… you got it right away… and then we became fast friends and the rest is history we’ve been working together now for a long time.”

  • This emphasizes the importance of collaborative partnerships in advancing educational technology and how Acadicus supports visionary educators.

Focusing on Core Value & “Getting Back to Roots”:

The conversation included a reflection on the foundational strengths of the platform:

• Jon: “…one of the things she said was just this is about roots you know this is just about you know getting back to the basics getting back to your roots like we built the simulation platform around a very specific set of value propositions that are still as valid today… if we can get back to those roots i think that’s going to make us stronger overall…”

  • This reinforces the enduring value of Acadicus in meeting core educational needs effectively with its current, robust capabilities.

The Motivation Behind Real-World Impact:

Jon shared the personal motivation derived from seeing Acadicus used in clinical settings:

• Jon: “…anytime i can get into a medical uh situation where i can actually watch health care professionals putting on headsets and learning how to do things um you know we’re seeing measurable impact so it’s like you’re watching in real time the process of people learning how to do skills that will reduce errors and to me that keeps me up at night like that motivates me…”

  • This speaks to the mission-driven aspect of the work and the tangible benefits VR simulation can bring to patient care.