Virtual reality: a training tool in the 21st century for disabled persons and medical students

Virtual Reality (VR) technology will emerge as an excellent tool for training in the 21st century. VR can be defined as a computer integrated system that supports user interaction allowing him to participate in an environment that mimics a scenario in the real world. VR environments allow individuals with disabilities to become immersed in a computer simulated environments that mimic real world scenarios to facilitate the learning of cognitive and physical skills. The use of VR when training medical students should provide hands-on experimentation and improve the reliability of their work activities. Also, VR environments will afford the opportunity to repeat a procedure at any point of the cycle and minimize risks of being in contact with bodily fluids as well as the occurrences of accidents from surgical tools. Training efforts undertaken in virtual environments should enhance the transferability of information while reducing training time, cost and errors. This paper looks at the use of VR as a training tool for individuals with disabilities as well as medical student trainees.