Application of immersive virtual reality (IVR) for the care of common diseases of older adults course: A mixed methods study.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to enhance understanding, engagement, and learning efficiency in the course "The Care of Common Diseases of Older Adults" using a developed Immersive Virtual Reality(IVR) system. METHODS: A mixed-methods study with 32 students was conducted. The quantitative part involved a randomized controlled trial, and the qualitative part included thematic interviews with students and teachers. RESULTS: The intervention group using the IVR system showed significant improvements in positivity and performance evaluation scores (P < 0.05) compared to the control group. Negative affect scores also decreased significantly (P < 0.05). Qualitative data from interviews supported the quantitative findings, highlighting increased curiosity, learning enthusiasm, and academic performance. CONCLUSION: IVR significantly enhances learning by stimulating curiosity and active participation, making education more accessible and improving student performance. Future IVR enhancements should focus on user-friendliness and empathetic feedback in adult care.

Self-efficacy mediates the effect of professional identity on learning engagement for nursing students in higher vocational colleges: A cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Learning engagement is a crucial predictor of academic achievement. It is essential to understand the factors influencing learning engagement among nursing students, especially from the learner's perspective, which is notably scarce but vital for designing effective educational interventions. OBJECTIVES: This study aims to investigate the mediating effect of self-efficacy on the relationship between professional identity and learning engagement for nursing students in higher vocational colleges. DESIGN: A cross-sectional electronic survey was conducted. SETTING: The study was conducted in four higher vocational colleges located in Guangdong Province, China. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 944 first- and second-year nursing students participated in the study between October and November 2022. METHODS: Data were collected with questionnaires on general information, professional identity, self-efficacy, and learning engagement and analyzed with SPSS 26.0 and PROCESS v4.1 (Model 4), exploring relationships among professional identity, self-efficacy, and learning engagement through Pearson correlations, multivariate regression, and mediation analysis with 5000 bootstrap samples. RESULTS: The participants exhibited moderate levels of professional identity (85.37 ± 13.52), self-efficacy (25.58 ± 5.74), and learning engagement (71.26 ± 16.17), which were all significantly correlated with each other (P < 0.01). In the model of the mediating effect, professional identity directly (ß = 0.811, t = 27.484, P < 0.001) and indirectly [ß = 0.112,95%CI (0.074-0.154)] significantly predicts college students' learning engagement; professional identity has a significant positive predictive effect on self-efficacy (ß = 0.182, t = 14.459, P < 0.001) and self-efficacy significantly predicts learning engagement (ß = 0.614, t = 8.292, P < 0.001). Furthermore, the direct effect of professional identity on learning engagement (0.699) and its mediating effect (0.112) account for 86.19 % and 13.81 % of the total effect (0.811), respectively. CONCLUSION: Participants exhibited moderate levels of professional identity, self-efficacy, and learning engagement. Professional identity and self-efficacy are interconnected and positively correlated, influencing learning engagement among nursing students, which highlights the need to foster these qualities to enhance education and future practice.

Using Virtual Reality in the Care of Older Adults With Dementia: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

There is a shortage of personnel to provide care for older adults with dementia, and traditional teaching methods could be improved. The teaching method used in the Care for Older Adults With Dementia course is mainly theoretical, lacking real-life care scenarios and practical procedural training. In the current study, we developed a virtual reality (VR) teaching system and designed a randomized controlled trial aimed at testing the availability of the VR-assisted teaching system, filling the gap in teaching through care scenarios, enabling students majoring in intelligent health and oldage care service management to have a more positive attitude toward learning, and improving students' knowledge and course satisfaction. This study showed that the developed VR system can meet the initial needs of daily teaching, help students have a more positive attitude toward learning, and improve their academic performance and course satisfaction. [Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 49(11), 25-32.].

A Novel Portable Foldable Laparoscopic Trainer for Surgical Education.

OBJECTIVES: Training in laparoscopic surgeries is difficult due to high cost and limited opportunity of commercially available laparoscopic training. Many "home-made" trainers were reported to solve this obstacle, but they were either cumbersome or high cost, or both. This study aimed to create an available and effective trainer to enable the trainees in developing laparoscopic skills anytime and anywhere. METHORDS: The laparoscopic trainer contains clamshell-like plastic plates and an electronic device with camera function, which could be supplied into a serious of laparoscopic procedures. The training procedure is detailed in this study. RESULTS: The creation of the portable and foldable trainer led to the development of "home-made" laparoscopic trainers. The integration of clamshell-like plastic plates and camera function device resulted in a trainer with low cost and enabled the trainees to practice skills in intermediate-fidelity environment. Additionally, the teaching effects show that the 3DV and 3DP models were significantly better than the traditional anatomical atlas. CONCLUSION: The trainer in this study was built to create a prototype of "home-made" trainer with flexible features and low cost. It can be considered as an alternate way of developing laparoscopic skills required in operation room.