Virtual reality training: University of Manitoba shows off cutting-edge technology
Virtual reality can be used to play games, visit a place you've never been to before, or even conduct a business meeting.
Now, nursing and other health science students at the University of Manitoba are making the same leap into VR.
"It uses all the same controls as they use in gaming," said Dr. Lawrence Gillman, the director of clinical learning and simulation at the Max Rady College of Medicine.
"So anyone who's been in a gaming environment before picks it up super easy."
Except here, they aren't slaying dragons, they're learning how to save lives without putting real patients at risk.
"They can try things, they can explore some of their options or treatment options that we normally wouldn't let them do because, of course, we don't want to harm patients," said Professor Nicole Harder from the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences.
"So they can do that in a virtual environment and really get that concept of what it means to be thinking like a nurse."
Other health professionals can also benefit from this training. Eric Northwood is an advanced practice respiratory therapist. He said VR training will give him a huge advantage.
"I do inter-facility transfers. So I'm in the back of an ambulance picking patients up from hospital to hospital," said Northwood. "So to be able to simulate a cramped environment like that, it's actually kind of difficult in a simulation area, but with a set of goggles on, you can kind of be anywhere."
The technology is still in its infancy and a bit clunky. Northwood said during his demo, you could leave a syringe hanging mid-air and it wouldn't fall to the ground.
Still, Gillman believes VR will be a critical part of training going forward. "To be able to do this so much easier without a mannequin where it's easily accessible, I truly think this is the future of simulation."
The university has been using this VR technology in the College of Nursing since 2022, but now it's going to be expanding it to the Faculty of Health Sciences.
In the future, officials think it may be possible for students to train with the technology using their own headsets at home. For now, it's being done in university labs where they supply the equipment.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NEW 'Oh my God, you're my brother': Manitoba man discovers six unknown siblings
After receiving a DNA kit one Christmas from his son-in-law, Hugh McCormick soon discovered that he had six unknown siblings, with whom he shared the same birth parents.
No refund for travellers who cancelled flight already scrapped by airline: regulator
Four years on, the controversy over whether airlines owed refunds to passengers after cancelling hundreds of thousands of flights during the pandemic continues to simmer, aggravated by a sluggish, opaque complaints process.
'My family doctor just fired me': Ontario patients frustrated with de-rostering
Dozens of Ontarians are expressing frustration in the province’s health-care system after their family doctors either dropped them as patients or threatened to after they sought urgent care elsewhere.
Canucks hold off Oilers for 4-3 win in Game 3
Brock Boeser had two goals and an assist, and the Vancouver Canucks hung on for a 4-3 win over the Edmonton Oilers in Game 3 of their second-round Stanley Cup playoff series.
Ottawa pizzeria places among top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world at international competition
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
Man fatally 'slashed in the neck' in downtown Toronto, suspect outstanding
Police are searching for a male suspect after a man was “slashed in neck” on Sunday morning in downtown Toronto and died.
WATCH Dashcam video shows terrifying near-miss on two-lane northern Ontario highway
There were some scary moments for several people on a northern Ontario highway caught on video Thursday after a chain reaction following a truck fire.
'He's in our hearts': Family and friends still seek answers one year after Nathan Wise's disappearance
It’s been a year since Nathan Wise went missing and his family is no closer to finding out what happened to him.
Canada Post cracks down on Nunavut loophole to get free Amazon Prime shipping
Amazon's paid subscription service provides free delivery for online shopping across Canada except for remote locations, the company said in an email. While customers in Iqaluit qualify for the offer, all other communities in Nunavut are excluded.