OUHK introduces groundbreaking 3D and VR technologies for teaching nursing

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As the Open University of Hong Kong (OUHK) enters its third decade of service for the community through grooming some of society’s most needed professionals, its School of Nursing and Healthcare introduced two cutting-edge virtual reality (VR) teaching aids. 

The first of these, the Digital Virtual Dissection System, displays the human body structure at a 1:1 ratio based on authentic cadaver dissection images. It enables students to learn anatomy by performing unlimited virtual dissections across multiple layers. To help students visualize the effects of specific diseases on the body, the system also features a database of pathological cases and images.

The other high-tech system, the VR Cave Learning System is distinguished from traditional single-user VR technology by allowing multiple users to enter the same scene at once and interact in a lifelike environment. It can thus simulate scenarios which would be difficult to duplicate in the conventional classroom setting, such as emergency situations in hospital wards or acrophobia, as would be encountered by both General and Mental Health nurses.  

As a long-standing pioneer in adopting educational technology, OUHK is once again the first local institution to use these state-of-the-art facilities for teaching, after having spearheaded the application of 3D and VR technology in teaching nursing and anatomy back in 2015. “The University has over the years invested plenty of resources to improve and upgrade its teaching facilities to offer students the best learning experience possible,” said OUHK President Prof. Yuk-Shan Wong. “As early as 2003 we introduced interactive learning. With the popularization of mobile technology, we developed a tablet learning platform a few years ago to help students learn more flexibly and efficiently. I believe new technologies will optimize the efficiency of educational delivery.”