Imperial College London uses the virtual world to let its med students work on “patients” and diagnose them, CNN says. It’s part of a pilot program aiming to bring a “more engaging learning environment” into the training process.

The school has set up a virtual hospital designed to look like its own real-life facility. Students communicate with professors and other colleagues within the world. Everything’s made to mimic the actual experience: If a student doesn’t virtually wash his hands, for example, he loses points.

Luckily, from the sounds of it, the personnel within the hospital are all part of the program — no random Second Lifers taking to the operating table. And, Imperial College says, the virtual training doesn’t replace the physical in-hospital experience. Rather, it’s a supplement to help expand students’ education and connect with their computer-driven lives.

Medical Students Using Second Life For Training is a post from: The Inquisitr