News release

From: Edith Cowan University

As hospital assaults rise, VR training steps in

New research from Edith Cowan University (ECU) has found that a single, 20-minute virtual reality (VR) training session could boost medical professional’s confidence in managing aggressive patients, highlighting the potential for immersive technology to strengthen frontline healthcare skills quickly and effectively.

Australian hospital assaults rose by 48 per cent in Queensland, 44 per cent in New South Wales, and 60 per cent in Victoria between 2015 and 2018, with a survey of over 3,000 Australian nursing and midwifery staff finding that 79 per cent of participants had experienced workplace violence in the six months prior to completing the survey.

In his latest research, PhD candidate Mr Joshua Johnson noted that exposure to these incidents is often persistent, resulting in severe consequences including burnout, workplace absenteeism due to injury, early exit from the profession, and diminished capacity to effectively treat and manage patients.

“Training in aggression and violence de-escalation and management can effectively assist in preparing both students and clinicians to manage hostile patients, though there is limited evidence of widespread implementation of such training in Australian nursing and other patient-facing health and medical tertiary programs. Many clinicians feel inadequately prepared to navigate aggressive and violent situations upon entering the workforce,” Mr Johnson said.

During the study, 221 undergraduate Australian nursing students completed a VR de-escalation training program, which was previously developed by the Simulation and Immersive Digital Technology Group at ECU.

The training program, known as I-VADE, was created in collaboration with a clinical advisory group of content specialists, including hospital-based work health and safety managers, workplace violence training coordinators, and experienced frontline healthcare workers.

During the study, the nursing students were organised into groups of 20, completing the VR training simultaneously on individual headsets, supported throughout by as little as two trained facilitators to guide and debrief the experience.

“We had an overwhelmingly positive response from the students that took part in the study. We found a statistically significant improvement in their confidence to manage patient aggression,” Mr Johnson said.

“But the real take away from this study was the successful delivery of the program at scale in a real-world training setting.”

ECU Associate Professor Brennen Mills, who took lead in the development of I-VADE, noted that the program was now being used in multiple locations across Australia to assist in the training of frontline healthcare workers.

“Our initial implementations of I-VADE in Western Australia were managed and overseen directly by us. But this research saw the I-VADE program be administered on the other side of the country, and by people who had no part in the program’s development.

“What is really encouraging is the results from this research echoed those found from cohorts we helped facilitate here in WA, proving the scalable efficacy of this technology,” Associate Professor Mills said.

I-VADE is now available through Alpha Immersion, with commercial trials planned for later this year.

Associate Professor Mills said equipping health and medical professionals with the skills to recognise, de-escalate and safely manage aggression was no longer optional, it was essential to protecting both staff and patients.

“Frontline workers walk into unpredictable, high-pressure situations every day, and too often they’re expected to learn how to manage aggression on the job. That carries risks not only for their own safety and wellbeing, but for the quality-of-care patients receive.”

“I-VADE offers a practical, standardised solution. It allows clinicians and students to really practise de-escalation strategies in realistic, fully immersive scenarios before they encounter them in the real world, where the stakes are high. By building confidence and capability in a safe environment, we can better prepare our frontline workforce, reduce harm, and create safer healthcare settings for everyone.”