Applying an immersive tutorial in virtual reality to learning a new technique

The medical world is continuously evolving, with techniques being created or improved almost daily. Immersive virtual reality (VR) is a technology that could be harnessed to develop tools that meet the educational challenges of this changing environment. We previously described the immersive tutorial, a 3D video (filmed from the first-person point of view), displayed on a VR application. This tool offers access to supplementary educational data in addition to the video. Here we attempt to assess improvement in learning a technique using this new educational format. We selected a single neurosurgical technique for the study: external ventricular drainage. We wrote a technical note describing this procedure and produced the corresponding immersive tutorial. We conducted a prospective randomized comparative study with students. All participants read the technical note, and one group used the immersive tutorial as a teaching supplement. The students completed a multiple-choice questionnaire immediately after the training and again at six months. One hundred seventy-six fourth-year medical students participated in the study; 173 were included in assessing the immediate learning outcomes and 72 were included at the six-month follow-up. The VR group demonstrated significantly better short-term results than the control group (P=0.01). The same trend was seen at six months. To our knowledge, this study presents one of the largest cohorts for VR. The use of the immersive tutorial could enable a large number of healthcare professionals to be trained without the need for expensive equipment. Le monde médical ne cesse d’évoluer avec notamment une multiplication des techniques de soins. La réalité virtuelle immersive (VR), pourrait permettre le développement d’outils qui répondent aux enjeux pédagogiques. Nous avions préalablement décrit le tutoriel immersif. Il s’agit d’une vidéo 3D (filmée en point de vue à la première personne), projetée dans une application VR. Cet outil offre en supplément du film, un accès à d’autres données pédagogiques. L’objectif de notre étude est d’évaluer l’amélioration de la mémorisation d’une technique en utilisant ce nouveau format pédagogique. Nous avons sélectionné une technique opératoire neurochirurgicale : la dérivation ventriculaire externe. Nous avons rédigé une note technique décrivant cette procédure et avons produit le tutoriel immersif correspondant. Une étude randomisée prospective comparative a été réalisée auprès d’étudiants