Preliminary Effectiveness of 360° Immersive Virtual Reality for the Acquisition of Empathy-Related Skills in Physiotherapy Students: A Quasi-Experimental Study

Introduction Virtual reality (VR) simulation programs are emerging as valuable tools in healthcare education, offering immersive experiences that help students develop soft skills like empathy. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a 360° VR simulation in enhancing empathy among physical therapy students toward patients with acquired brain injury. Methods A quasi-experimental study was performed with 3rd year physical therapy students, analyzing their empathy with the Jefferson Scale of Empathy for Health Professionals (JSE-HP) before and after an immersive clinical simulation VR program which allowed the viewer to get first person immersed in a stroke patient’s actual life. A one-way ANOVA of repeated measures was used to determine the PRE-POST intervention differences. Results A total of 139 students (58% male; aged 22.31 ± 2.84 years) participated in the VR experience, significantly improving the JSE-HP total score (PRE = 84.65 ± 8.05 versus POST = 86.81 ± 8.11; p < 0.01). Comparing the JSE-HP score by sex, significant PRE-POST differences were found in the male participants, but not in the female participants. Both female and male participants improved different items of the cognitive dimension of empathy. In the same line, in the analysis by Spanish level, the native students showed significant improvements in some items relative to the cognitive dimension of empathy. Conclusion The VR program could be an educational resource to improve the empathy of health sciences students and thus the future therapeutic relationship with the patient. Male participants and participants with a higher level of Spanish could be more positively affected by this VR program.