TMU pioneers world’s largest virtual reality anatomy class

In collaboration with HTC, Taipei Medical University established the world’s largest virtual reality (VR) anatomy classroom in late 2018. Furnished with 10 sets of VIVE Pro (awarded 2018 VR headgear of the year) and 3D Organon VR anatomy software, this enables individual study as well as cooperative use of the same VR environment, and allows students to visualize lectures on anatomical structures in depth to better understand how bodies function.

Photo credit to HTC

Anatomy and Cell Biology Director Hung-Ming Chang of the College of Medicine calls the 3D Organon VR Anatomy software students’ best way to gain in-depth anatomical understanding. While cadaver dissection provides irreplaceable realism, the VR headset allows repeated examinations of various body parts unchanged by incisions and other exploratory changes that are part of cadaver study. Because the immersive 360-degree view shows tissues, bones, muscles, blood vessels, nerves and organs, students are better prepared for future clinical work.

Edward Y. Chang, HTC’s health and medical division manager, says VR technology’s three-dimensional visualization is a new teaching method that accelerates learning. Use of VR in medical education and clinical applications will help more students, teachers, clinical medical staff and patients in the future.

The 3D Organon VR Anatomy system’s immersive learning environment increases student participation with different instructional techniques. It can support up to 300 individuals online at the same time, and can disassemble and rotate over 4000 anatomical structures in the VR environment. Besides stationary VR human body part models, the system also provides dynamic dissection models realistically presenting the extension and contraction of muscles and the beating of the heart. Even heart valve motion can be examined, giving students a perspective impossible to gain with a cadaver.

Future 3D Organon VR Anatomy improvements will complement TMU’s development of more VR courses that can be applied to previews, in-class use and reviews to encourage active learning. The system will be further expanded to in-service and continuing education, the “smart medicine” EMBA and medical camps for pre-college students.

Students use VR equipment to study anatomy

For interviews or a copy of the paper, contact Office of Global Engagement via global.initiatives@tmu.edu.tw.