Medical School participates in a €400K Erasmus+ grant

The Medical School participates in a €400,000 Erasmus+ grant for the Virtual Realities in Medical Education (ViR-MEd) project. The project is led by Dr Achilleas Pavlou, with team members Professors Alexia Papageorgiou, Stelios Georgiades, and Dr Panagiota Andreou.

The ViR-MEd project involves several academic institutions: the University of Nicosia, the National University of Ireland Galway, the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, and Stichting VU in the Netherlands. The project is also supported by non-academic partners, Vimodo Ltd and SILVERSKY3D VR TECHNOLOGIES LTD, both based in Cyprus. The aim is to improve clinical communication skills among medical students by using virtual reality (VR) and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. Students will engage in patient interactions through VR simulations with virtual patients powered by ChatGPT’s API. These simulations will allow students to train their clinical communication skills and prepare for Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs) using technology that can be accessed anytime and anywhere, including from the comfort of their own homes.

The project focuses on accessibility, with the VR platform designed to work with low-cost VR goggles, allowing students to use their smartphones as VR screens. This ensures that the advanced training tools are affordable and available to a broader range of students, breaking down barriers to high-quality medical education.

Dr Achilleas Pavlou, the primary investigator, stated, ‘The project aims to encourage collaboration among educational institutions, sharing practices and teaching methods. By using VR and AI, ViR-MEd seeks to prepare future professionals in a practical and interactive way that closely mirrors real-life patient care scenarios. We are excited to embark on this project, which has the potential to transform medical education and make advanced training accessible to a wider audience’.