Using Virtual Reality and 360-Degree Video to Highlight Social Determinants of Health
Document Type
Article
Abstract
Nurse educators face challenges in teaching students about social determinants of health (SDOH) due to limited opportunities for community placements. A college of nursing in the southeastern United States developed a project incorporating virtual reality (VR) and 360-degree videos into prelicensure population health nursing courses. The project enhanced understanding of SDOH by immersing students in the lived experiences of patients facing negative health impacts. After participating in the VR experience, students reported increased empathy, a deeper understanding of barriers to health, and greater engagement with content.
Nurse educators must use creativity to educate students about social determinants of health (SDOH) and devise interventions to improve patient circumstances (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2021). SDOH are critical factors that shape individuals’ health, well-being, and overall quality of life and include elements such as safe housing, reliable transportation, access to education and job opportunities, and availability of nutritious foods. Individuals lacking these elements are often exposed to discrimination, violence, and environmental pollution (Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, n.d.).
Despite their profound impact on health outcomes, it can be challenging to effectively communicate and demonstrate the effects of SDOH in classroom settings. Community-based clinical assignments that place students in direct contact with patients navigating these barriers offer a more impactful approach to understanding SDOH and their role in health disparities. However, finding such placements is difficult, particularly following the COVID-19 pandemic (Thompson et al., 2022). To address this issue, we developed a virtual simulation, an immersive activity in which students experience a day in the life of a patient affected by specific SDOH. The simulation allows students to also examine environmental nonmedical factors that contribute to health disparities and poor patient outcomes.
Simulation can provide a format for boosting experiential learning and strengthening academic and clinical outcomes as learning experiences are maximized through realistic scenarios (Bryant et al., 2020). Virtual reality (VR) simulations with 360-degree videos position students in realistic, interactive scenarios (Chang et al., 2022; Rosendahl & Wagner, 2024). At our college of nursing (CON) in the southeastern United States, an internal grant enabled us to leverage these technologies and highlight SDOH in prelicensure population health courses, incorporating VR and interactive 360-degree videos into the curriculum.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
Publication Info
Published in Nursing Education Perspectives, 2025.
APA Citation
Bernheisel, K. H., Bronson, S., Taylor, A., & Kubas, J. (2025). Using virtual reality and 360-degree video to highlight social determinants of health. Nursing Education Perspectives. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.NEP.0000000000001475
Rights
© 2025, Wolters Kluwer Health