Authors: Jenni L. Hoffman, DNP, FNP-C, CLNC, FAANP, Tsu-Yin Wu, PhD, RN, FAAN, Grigoris Argeros, PhD

While virtual reality (VR) simulation is gaining traction in acute healthcare training, its application in non-acute and community health nursing remains underexplored. This convergent mixed-methods study evaluated an innovative community health nursing VR simulation designed to enhance prelicensure nursing students’ understanding of social determinants of health and cultural competence.

One hundred prelicensure nursing students enrolled in a community health nursing course at an urban, public Midwestern university participated in the study. Participants completed pre- and post-tests to assess knowledge gains, alongside the Simulation Effectiveness Tool-Modified (SET-M) survey to measure perceived effectiveness. Results demonstrated a significant increase in post-test scores compared to pre-test scores across the majority of participants.

Additionally, students strongly agreed that the VR experience was highly effective, noting enhanced confidence, actionable knowledge, and valuable clinical insights applicable to community-based care. The authors concluded that VR simulation is a powerful tool for building non-acute nursing competencies.

The full research article can be found here.

University of Michigan has used the SimX platform in its simulation training.