Drexel's Virtually Inspired Unveiled at HIMSS

This February, close to 45,000 attendees will stream into the Orange County Conference Center in Orlando, Florida, for the Healthcare Information and Management System Society Conference. There, they will explore the intersection of two industries increasingly intertwined: healthcare and information technology. Fittingly, Drexel University Online will be in attendance.

Drexel built its reputation on being a forward-thinking, technology-driven school. Nationally-ranked online programs in the College of Computing and Informatics and the College of Nursing and Health Professions take advantage of cutting-edge technology to make sure online students receive the same robust education they would were they roaming campus.  

At this year’s conference, “where the brightest minds in health and IT meet,” Drexel University Online will provide attendees with information on taking their careers to the next level with a virtual degree. They will also be showcasing a new website, powered by Drexel University Online, featuring examples of some of the most innovative uses of technology in the ever-evolving field of healthcare education.

The website, Virtually Inspired, was grounded in a rigorous yearlong research effort and features a series of videos showcasing some of the most innovative ideas and best practices in the world of online and blended education. Virtually Inspired serves as a repository for knowledge-sharing; a place where educators facing the unique opportunities and challenges of the digital age can come for inspiration, while also adding examples of their own virtual success stories.

For example, students in Drexel University’s College of Nursing and Health Professions have found that regardless of where they are in the world, they have a patient handy: Tina, the 28-year-old virtual avatar. Tina was created by educational software developer Shadow Health and is fully interactive, allowing students to ask her questions and perform exams on her. In turn, she responds as a real patient would based on what she’s asked. This allows students to continually work on their interpersonal skills and patient evaluations through repetition in a way they could not with a real-life patient. While it doesn’t entirely remove the necessity for in-person patient interaction as a learning tool, it does relieve some of the stress of online students who may not be able to regularly attend such classes.

Another example comes from the United States Army Medical Department Center and School (AMEDD C&S). Partnering with MTS Technoloiges, AMEED C&S turned a classroom-based course into an online one designed to train patient administrative specialists by immersing them in a virtual world simulation. 

Explore the Virtually Inspired website and visit Drexel University Online at the HIMSS Conference, Feb. 19-23, for more information.