Utilizing Virtual Reality To Introduce Hospice And End-Of-Life Approaches

Research poster describing the following: The objective of this study was to assess changes in students’ comfort with talking about and caring for patients at EOL. A gap in the degree of instruction regarding palliative care in pharmacy curricula has been identified. The use of a virtual reality experience (VRE) has been shown to increase students’ understanding of and empathy for older adults with age-related conditions. We created a two-part palliative care series embedded into the 3rd professional year curriculum. Part one discussed perceptions of death and deprescribing at end-of-life (EOL). Part two used the Embodied Labs® VRE to follow a patient receiving a terminal diagnosis, enrolling in hospice, and coming to terms with death. Students (n=57) were administered a pre-survey prior to the VRE, and a postsurvey following completion of the VRE.https://dune.une.edu/pharmprac_facpost/1009/thumbnail.jp