Leveraging Virtual Simulation Platforms to Prepare Students for Interprofessional Collaborative Practice

Description of the Seminar

This seminar explores how health profession educators can effectively implement virtual simulation platforms to create meaningful interprofessional learning experiences. While traditional health professional programs have relied on silo-based simulations, there is growing recognition of the value in cross-disciplinary scenarios that highlight the interdependency among health professionals when providing person-centered team-based care. This seminar will present findings from an evidence-based exploration of available data, share results from piloting AI utility in health science curricula, and evaluate various virtual simulation platforms. Participants will gain insights into developing realistic, meaningful, and sustainable learning experiences that effectively prepare students for interprofessional collaborative practice.

Addressing the Summit Theme

This seminar directly addresses the summit theme by demonstrating innovative approaches to interprofessional education through technology-enhanced simulations. By exploring the integration of AI-generated avatars and virtual platforms, the seminar showcases cutting-edge methodologies that can transform how students learn to collaborate across disciplines. The evidence-based approaches presented will help educators implement scalable interprofessional experiences that bridge theory with practice in safe learning environments.

Learning Objectives

After attending this session, learners will be able to:

1. Identify the strengths and weaknesses of several virtual simulation platforms, including differences between live versus AI-generated avatars

2. Evaluate the scalability and sustainability of virtual interprofessional learning experiences

3. Implement specific virtual simulation strategies that enhance students' perception of confidence, ability, and knowledge necessary for interprofessional teamwork

Immediately Actionable Skills and Practical Knowledge

Participants will gain:

1. Comparative analysis tools to assess virtual simulation platforms appropriate for their institutional context
2. Strategies for integrating AI-generated avatars into health science curricula
3. Implementation frameworks for creating sustainable interprofessional virtual simulations
4. Assessment methods to evaluate student learning outcomes from virtual interprofessional experiences

Active Learning Strategies

The seminar will engage participants through multiple active learning approaches:

1. Qualtrics survey platform will be used to introduce the practice of "Exit Tickets," for the prompting of short reflections and specific questions about learning takeaways
2. Technology-based simulations demonstrating key concepts, allowing interprofessional learners to engage with virtual reality educational environments firsthand

3. Collaborative digital whiteboard activities to identify implementation challenges and solutions in virtual interprofessional education

This seminar provides participants with practice-based and evidence-based actionable strategies they can immediately apply to enhance their own journey toward implementing effective virtual simulations for collaborative, interprofessional education.