A&M-Corpus Christi develops country’s first virtual reality health care training

The extension of virtual reality technology from military use into health care is said to be a natural progression, and studies show that students learn faster using life-like simulators.

The high-tech world of virtual reality is intersecting with health care at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi with development, begun in March 2005, of the country’s first high-fidelity, first-person, role-playing immersive simulation training tool for health care professionals.

The tool, called Pulse!!, is a computerized version of the real-life intensive care unit at the National Navy Medical Center in Bethesda, Md.

“Using an actual facility helps create a real-world environment,” said Claudia Johnston, associate vice president for special projects at the university. “We made several visits to the hospital, took pictures and made sure the virtual version is like the real version—and it is, right down to the exits, nursing stations and pictures on the walls.”

Virtual reality technology aids learning

Johnston said that students learn quicker using simulators, and that the extension from military use into health care is a natural progression of virtual reality technology. A pre-release version of Pulse!! will begin testing in January at Yale University School of Medicine in New Haven, Conn.; The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, Md.; and the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md.

“The work undertaken by the Pulse!! project’s highly-skilled team puts A&M-Corpus Christi further on the technology map because of the ingenuity exercised in developing top-flight methods for medical training,” said A&M-Corpus Christi President Flavius Killebrew.

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Texas A&M leads effort to improve agriculture in Rwanda

Dan Clay of Michigan State University and Tim Schilling of Texas A&M leave Maraba Cooperative after a celebration honoring the PEARL contributions. (Photo courtesy of Michigan State University)

Texas A&M University is leading a project that focuses on high-value crop development, broadening agricultural capacity and marketing Rwandan agricultural products internationally, said an expert in international agriculture. The project will also help address health issues in that country, especially those related to HIV/AIDS.

The project is Sustaining Partnerships to enhance Rural Enterprise and Agribusiness Development, also known as SPREAD, said Linda Cleboski, program development coordinator at The Norman E. Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture in College Station. It is a cooperative agreement between the U.S. Agency for International Development and The Texas A&M University System.

Long-time partners expand efforts

"This is an expansion of ongoing efforts between USAID and other long-time project partners, including Michigan State University, The National University of Rwanda, and various agricultural industry groups and humanitarian organizations," Cleboski said.

The international development organization has provided $5 million for agricultural enhancement and $1 million for health- and AIDS-related issues for the new project, she said. Project partners are providing an additional $3 million.

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