Claudia Johnson confers with on-site Pulse!! producer Ben Hanson (Photo courtesy of the Office of Special Projects, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi)
(Corpus Christi)—Claudia Johnston led a demonstration team that showcased the Pulse!! Virtual Clinical Learning Lab during the American College of Surgeons recent meeting in Las Vegas.
Pulse!! is a research project overseen by Johnston and panels of experts in medicine and learning theory. Pulse!! research tests the theory that high-fidelity virtual technology can provide effective medical learning. The Pulse!! learning platform employs state-of-the-art computer-game technologies to create a virtual environment within which users employ discrete medical knowledge and skills.
“We’re honored that the university was invited to a meeting of this prestigious organization,” Johnston said. “It signals that the medical community is eager to explore Pulse!! technology as a way to meet future challenges to medical clinical education.”
The project is of interest to military medical officials as a means of quickly training physicians and other medical personnel in new treatment methods to meet rapid changes in the nature and complexity of warfare injuries.
A&M-Corpus Christi has contracted commercial game developer BreakAway Ltd. of Hunt Valley, Md., to collaborate with the Office of Special Projects in producing a virtual environment that will simulate medical treatment in three-dimensional space with a level of visual fidelity never before attempted. 