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. 2020 May 19;20(1):442.
doi: 10.1186/s12913-020-05290-7.

Using virtual worlds as a platform for collaborative meetings in healthcare: a feasibility study

Michael J Taylor  1   2 , Chiya Shikaislami  1 , Chris McNicholas  2 , David Taylor  1 , Julie Reed  2 , Ivo Vlaev  3
Affiliations

Using virtual worlds as a platform for collaborative meetings in healthcare: a feasibility study

Michael J Taylor et al. BMC Health Serv Res. .

Abstract

Background: Healthcare teams often consist of geographically dispersed members. Virtual worlds can support immersive, high-quality, multimedia interaction between remote individuals; this study investigated use of virtual worlds to support remote healthcare quality improvement team meetings.

Methods: Twenty individuals (12 female, aged 25-67 [M = 42.3, SD = 11.8]) from 6 healthcare quality improvement teams conducted collaborative tasks in virtual world or face-to-face settings. Quality of collaborative task performances were measured and questionnaires and interviews were used to record participants' experiences of conducting the tasks and using the virtual world software.

Results: Quality of collaborative task outcomes was high in both face-to-face and virtual world settings. Participant interviews elicited advantages for using virtual worlds in healthcare settings, including the ability of the virtual environment to support tools that cannot be represented in equivalent face-to-face meetings, and the potential for virtual world settings to cause improvements in group-dynamics. Reported disadvantages for future virtual world use in healthcare included the difficulty that people with weaker computer skills may experience with using the software. Participants tended to feel absorbed in the collaborative task they conducted within the virtual world, but did not experience the virtual environment as being 'real'.

Conclusions: Virtual worlds can provide an effective platform for collaborative meetings in healthcare quality improvement, but provision of support to those with weaker computer skills should be ensured, as should the technical reliability of the virtual world being used. Future research could investigate use of virtual worlds in other healthcare settings.

Keywords: MDT; Multidisciplinary team meeting; Quality improvement; Virtual worlds.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no competing interests to declare.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Diagram showing the starting positions of the Towers of Hanoi task
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Avatars, representing two participants, in front of the virtual Towers of Hanoi game
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Two participants’ avatars using the reporting tool to document a PDSA cycle together
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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