Student nurses use virtual reality - 6th November 2019

Student nurses in France are using experience playing video games to help their training.

Virtual reality - or VR - is being used more at nursing colleges.

The program at this college in Paris, France, allows nurses to develop new skills more quickly. In a real hospital, this would take much longer.

Wearing a headset, the student feels surrounded by a real hospital.

VR gives trainee nurses practice with "virtual" patients.

Sitting at a computer screen, the student nurses guide themselves around a hospital room. They ask the patient questions just as if they were real people.

The nurses say it's very realistic. They feel alone with a patient, which helps students prepare for when they are qualified.

VR isn't just valuable for learning. It also helps assess the skills students are developing.