Technology in Nursing Education: Leading Innovation
Written by:
University of Tulsa
• Jan 6, 2025
Technology in Nursing Education: Leading Innovation
Imagine a classroom where nursing students don virtual reality (VR) headsets and experience what it’s like to step into a bustling emergency room. In another lab, a computerized cadaver table allows students to examine organ systems and simulate surgical procedures. Elsewhere, telehealth simulations teach students how to diagnose and treat patients remotely. This is not science fiction — this is technology in nursing education today.
The integration of cutting-edge technology tools into nursing education is reshaping how nurses learn and practice. A program such as an RN to Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree program can give nurses the tools they need to thrive in a health care world that increasingly relies on technological innovations.
Why Technology in Nursing Education Is Critical
As health care practices evolve, so must nursing education. Textbooks and traditional classroom settings alone cannot sufficiently prepare nursing students for the fast-paced, high-tech environments they’ll face as nurses in hospitals and clinics.
From artificial intelligence (AI)-powered diagnostic tools to telemedicine platforms, new technologies are empowering health care professionals to deliver care that’s faster, smarter, and more personalized than ever before. In fact, a recent study published in Frontiers in Medicine found that technology has significantly improved how quickly nurses respond to emergencies. Innovations in the use of smart devices are also transforming the way nurses monitor patients and make decisions.
If nurses don’t learn how to navigate these advances during their education, they risk being left behind in the ever-evolving world of health care.
Benefits of Integrating Technology into Nursing Education
Aside from meeting the practical necessity of ensuring nursing school graduates possess the tech-savviness required to do their jobs, the use of technology in nursing education has several benefits.
Improved Learning Outcomes
Technology has the power to create more dynamic, engaging learning environments than traditional methods that lack technology.
Consider virtual simulations: Students can practice performing procedures or making critical decisions in low-stakes environments. The technology also offers students immersive learning experiences that can help them build their confidence and competence.
Research shows that simulation technologies can improve nursing students’ clinical reasoning. For example, a 2022 study published in Clinical Simulation in Nursing found that virtual simulation learning methods can significantly improve students’ practical knowledge and clinical performance more effectively than traditional learning methods.
Increased Student Engagement and Retention
Nursing school can be demanding. The sheer volume of material covered in nursing programs can overwhelm students, and traditional teaching methods can feel dry and disconnected from real-life practice.
Interactive learning tools, such as gamified quizzes or virtual reality scenarios, add an element of fun while reinforcing crucial concepts.
A VR-based lesson, for example, could take students on a virtual tour of a hospital to identify common medical conditions in patients or diagnose potential complications. This type of hands-on, experiential learning not only keeps students engaged but also improves their retention of the material. Students are often more likely to remember information when it’s delivered in an interactive, experiential format compared to traditional lectures.
Moreover, technology can personalize the learning experience, adapting to the unique pace and needs of each student.
Enhanced Clinical Preparedness
Technology gives nursing students more exposure than ever before to real-world clinical scenarios, advanced patient care techniques, and hands-on simulations in a safe, controlled environment.
It also provides students with the flexibility to learn and practice nursing material whenever and wherever they choose. Mobile apps, for example, can provide students with access to case studies, treatment plans, and drug information at any time. This type of access to resources helps students stay prepared and up to date on the latest clinical guidelines, even after they’ve graduated.
The Technology Tools at the Forefront of Nursing Education
Nursing students will likely encounter various types of technology while in school. For example, nurses may have the opportunity to learn through immersive simulation technologies. These tools can simulate clinical practices, such as a virtual interaction with a patient, and mimic anatomical models of the human body.
Other technological tools focus on making learning easier and more accessible to nursing students. These tools help students organize their coursework, track their progress, and get easy access to everything they need — from lectures and assignments to resources and feedback.
Nursing education has always emphasized a balance of theory and practice. Technology in nursing education can enhance that balance, offering immersive and interactive learning experiences. Here are some of the most impactful innovations changing the way nurses learn:
Virtual Reality
Virtual reality technology offers some of the most exciting advancements in nursing education. It allows nursing students to practice, make mistakes, and build the skills and confidence they need to thrive in their careers.
VR technology uses a headset with motion sensors and 3D visuals that can transport students into fully immersive medical scenarios. In these digital environments, nursing students interact with virtual patients and equipment as if they were in actual clinical settings, complete with realistic sights, sounds, and even movements.
This gives students a chance to put their learning into practice in real-world-like but controlled environments where no real patients are at risk. It also gives nursing students opportunities to tackle complex medical cases, from cardiac arrest emergencies to rare conditions such as anaphylactic shock, which they might not often encounter during their clinical rotations.
In traditional teaching environments, nursing students may learn about emergency procedures by reading case studies or practicing on mannequins. While useful, these methods can’t fully replicate the pressure or complexity of real-life crises. Students learning through VR, however, can enter a virtual hospital room, assess a patient in distress, monitor the patient’s vital signs, and make quick decisions — experiencing the urgency and critical thinking required in actual emergencies.
In trauma care training, for instance, VR can place students in chaotic, high-energy environments where they must stabilize a critically injured patient. This helps students learn how to prioritize tasks and respond to rapidly changing conditions.
Additionally, VR simulations provide immediate, realistic feedback on a student’s technique. Virtual patients’ conditions change in real time based on nursing students’ actions. In turn, students can learn to better understand the consequences of their interventions and adapt quickly if things go wrong.
What the Research Says About Virtual Reality in Nursing Education
A 2024 study published in Frontiers in Medicine found that VR training can significantly improve nursing students’ competencies in several key areas, including:
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Faster Reaction Times: VR-trained students responded more quickly to trauma scenarios compared to traditionally trained students.
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More Accurate Interventions: VR simulations led to more precise medical interventions, especially in high-pressure situations such as cardiac arrests.
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Improved Confidence: VR-trained students reported greater self-assurance when managing emergency cases after VR training than their traditionally trained counterparts.
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Enhanced Clinical Performance: After VR-based trauma care simulations, students performed better in real-life clinical settings.
Augmented Reality
Similar to VR, augmented reality (AR) technology uses simulations to engage students with medical concepts and procedures. However, while VR technology fully immerses students in simulated environments, AR technology blends digital elements with the real world. This allows students to stay grounded in their physical surroundings while interacting with digital overlays.
AR technology overlays digital information onto real-world environments. For example, when studying anatomy, students can point a tablet at a diagram of the human body and see a 3D model of the body’s internal organs, bones, or muscles.
This dynamic view brings textbook material to life and makes it easier for students to visualize how different parts of the body function together. Additionally, AR technology can guide students through the proper use of medical devices by providing visual prompts and digital overlays, ensuring they understand the equipment’s function and operation.
Computerized Cadaver Tables
Traditional cadavers provide invaluable insight into human anatomy, but they come with challenges: They’re costly and subject to decay. Enter the computerized cadaver table — full-body, life-sized digital representations of the human body.
Much like real cadavers, computerized tables allow students to examine the organs, muscles, bones, and blood vessels of a human body. However, these high-tech tables offer even more flexibility. Students can zoom in on specific anatomical structures, rotate the body for different perspectives, and “peel back” layers of skin, muscle, and bone to observe how various systems work together.
At Bolles Upper School in Jacksonville, Florida, for instance, students use a computerized Anamotage cadaver table to explore the nervous system in detail, visualizing the entire network of nerves in ways traditional dissections or textbooks can’t replicate. This immersive experience deepens their understanding and enriches their learning.
Educators can customize the digital bodies students examine, adding specific conditions or abnormalities. For instance, an instructor can program a digital cadaver to include a tumor or a rare disease. This makes it possible for students to encounter a broader range of medical scenarios than they would have had the opportunity to study through traditional dissection. For example, The University of Tulsa has added Visible Body interactive anatomy products as part of its online anatomy course.
What the Research Says About Computerized Cadaver Tables in Nursing Education
Research shows that computerized cadaver tables significantly enhance nurses’ anatomy education. A 2023 study published in Cureus found that integrating this technology into nursing education improves both students’ understanding and their retention.
Key findings include:
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Enhanced Learning: Students using computerized cadaver tables scored higher in post-lab quizzes compared to those relying on traditional methods.
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Expanded Real-Time Simulations: The tables allow students to simulate medical conditions and explore anatomical variations that aid them in making diagnoses and treatment plans.
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More Accessible and Safe Learning: The tables provide a safer, chemical-free environment, while still offering immersive, hands-on learning experiences.
High-Fidelity Simulators
Simulation labs have long been a staple of nursing education, but today’s high-fidelity simulators take this concept to a whole new level. These simulators can breathe, bleed, cry, and even give birth. They offer students the chance to work through real-life medical situations that help prepare them for the realities of patient care.
Unlike basic training models, high-fidelity simulators are equipped with lifelike anatomical structures and the ability to react to interventions in real time. This means students can see how their actions — from administering medication to performing CPR — affect the mannequin’s vital signs and physical responses.
The anatomical detail of high-fidelity simulators includes accurate depictions of organs, veins, muscles, and bones. The high-tech mannequins not only simulate changes in vital signs, such as heart rate and blood pressure, but also more complex responses, such as sweating, pupil dilation, and labored breathing.
These capacities of the technology make it possible for nursing students to interact with the simulators in ways that mirror real patient care. This gives nursing students invaluable experience in diagnosing, treating, and responding to emergencies. It also allows them to make mistakes and learn from those mistakes in a safe environment.
Some of the most valuable scenarios that high-fidelity simulators can replicate are:
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Cardiac Arrest: Allowing students to practice CPR and advanced cardiac life support techniques
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Respiratory Emergencies: Requiring students to manage airway interventions
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Childbirth: Providing students with hands-on experience with deliveries, including complicated births and postpartum complications
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Trauma: Giving students the opportunity to practice trauma assessments and emergency interventions
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Sepsis and Shock: Teaching students to identify and treat systemic infections and circulatory failure under time pressure
What the Research Says About High-Fidelity Simulation in Nursing Education
Research indicates that high-fidelity simulation plays a significant role in improving nursing students’ clinical judgment. A study published in the Journal of Nursing Regulation found that nursing students who underwent clinical training with high-fidelity simulation scored higher in clinical judgment compared to students who did not.
These results align with earlier research, reinforcing the understanding that high-fidelity simulation enhances critical thinking skills crucial for nursing practice. Key findings from the Journal of Nursing Regulation study include:
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Improved Clinical Judgment: Students trained with high-fidelity simulation scored higher in the key areas of clinical judgment, including noticing, interpreting, responding, and reflecting.
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Enhanced Practical Decision-Making Skills: High-fidelity simulation helped students apply theoretical knowledge to complex, real-world situations, improving their ability to make informed decisions under pressure.
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Increased Preparedness for Practice: The experience allowed students to develop the necessary clinical judgment for both emergency and routine care situations.
Another study, published in Inquiry, also highlights the benefits of high-fidelity simulation, especially in pediatric nursing education. This research confirmed that high-fidelity simulation helped nursing students build their clinical judgment by allowing them to practice real-life scenarios in a safe, controlled environment.
Key findings from the Inquiry study include:
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Increased Safe Practice Opportunities: High-fidelity simulation gave students the chance to practice clinical decision-making without any risk of harming actual patients.
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Enhanced Proficiency: Students were able to practice as much as they needed to until they reached proficiency, making high-fidelity simulation a valuable tool, especially when clinical placements are limited.
E-Learning Platforms
E-learning platforms are a key technology in nursing education. Students can access learning materials from these platforms at their own pace. Additionally, these platforms may tailor lessons based on how a student is performing. For instance, algorithms on a platform can assess how well a student grasps a concept and then modify the lesson accordingly.
Students struggling with a topic may receive extra explanations, practice exercises, or additional learning resources. Those who demonstrate a high degree of understanding could be challenged with more complex case studies or applications of the same material.
These platforms also make collaborative learning easier, as many include features for group discussions, peer reviews, and joint projects, simulating the teamwork necessary in nursing practice.
Nursing students can take advantage of digital learning apps that help make studying more interactive as well. For example, clinical simulation apps allow students to practice decision-making and patient care in a virtual setting, while apps on anatomy can give students a 3D, interactive way to study the human body.
Other apps provide instant access to drug references, clinical guides, and nursing procedures, ensuring students are well prepared for exams. Still other digital apps use gamified quizzes to make studying more engaging.
These digital apps not only help students with their coursework, but they can also play a role in ongoing nursing professional development .
Take the Next Step in Your Nursing Career
Technology is reshaping how schools prepare future nurses. From e-learning platforms that allow for personalized, flexible learning to simulations that prepare students for real-world patient care, the integration of technology into nursing education helps ensure students succeed.
The University of Tulsa’s RN to Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree program uses technology to enhance students’ learning and help them build the skills necessary for today’s health care environments. With access to advanced digital learning tools, clinical simulations, and interactive resources, this program prepares students to excel in their studies and nursing careers.**
Ready to advance your nursing career? Learn more about the RN to BSN program at The University of Tulsa, and take the next step toward achieving your professional goals.
Recommended Readings
Clinic vs. Hospital Nursing: Which One Should You Choose?
Tips for Working While in Nursing School
Why a BSN Is Important in Nursing
Sources:
Curationis, “Technology Usage for Teaching and Learning in Nursing Education: An Integrative Review”
Cureus, “The Anatomage Table: A Promising Alternative in Anatomy Education”
The Florida Times-Union, “Getting a Leg Up in Anatomy, Bolles Buys Computerized Cadaver Table”
Inquiry, “Effect of High-Fidelity Simulation on Clinical Judgment Among Nursing Students”
Wolters Kluwer, Help Students Be Practice-Ready With the Next Generation of vSim for Nursing
