An Evaluation of AR/VR-Enabled Simulation-Based Learning for Surgical Skills Development

Abstract

The incorporation of Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) technology is transforming surgical education in medical institutions across India, but systematic assessment has been limited. The study was conducted to evaluate the learning satisfaction and skill retention of medical students of Delhi NCR medical colleges after 30 days using AR/VR modules compared to the traditional method adopted. A cross-sectional design was used in 287 final year medical students (intervention group: n=145, control group: n=142) assessed at all three time points, immediate post-training, at the 3-month follow-up and at the 6-month follow-up. The learning satisfaction was evaluated by a modified 5-point likert scale, and the operative competency was evaluated by structured observation checklists and post-operative performance metrics. The immediate satisfaction scores for AR/VR trained students with mean score of 4.31 and SD of 0.58 were significantly higher than the traditional learner group with mean score of 3.12 and SD of 0.71 (p<0.001). More critically, retention at 6 months continued to be greatly higher in the AR/VR group (84.2% of skill retention) than the controls (61.8% of skill retention), indicating greater knowledge persistence. Implementation quality, however, substantially influenced these benefits, with colleges that had a structured AR/VR protocol scoring 23% higher than colleges that integrated AR/VR in an ad hoc manner. This assessment paves the way for the use of AR/VR in surgical education across Indian medical colleges, provided there are effective implementation strategies and faculty training programs in place.

Keywords: Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, surgical skills, medical education, India, simulation-based learning, skill retention.