With the aid of a 2018 Education Research Grant Award from the Center for Faculty Excellence at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS), the Division of Thoracic Surgery will evaluate the clinical and educational efficacy of a new interactive 360-degree virtual reality platform.
“We are looking to determine whether this platform is beneficial and adds to existing technologies that allow surgeons to evaluate and stage lung cancer,” explained Keith Mortman, MD, chief of the Division of Thoracic Surgery and associate professor of surgery at SMHS and principal investigator for the study.
The grant will allow the Division of Thoracic Surgery to hire a research assistant to help conduct the study. General surgery residents at both junior and senior levels will be the subjects for evaluating the new tool.
“In keeping with the SMHS Strategic Plan,” said Mortman “we are incorporating new technology and exploring new models of medical education.”
The award also will allow the investigators to travel to a national meeting to present their data. If this pilot study is successful, the new technology may be used to educate medical students at SMHS.
The CFE gives the Education Research Grant to encourage and support scholarship in medical and health sciences education. The office provides $45,000 annually for the initiation of new medical and/or health sciences research projects.
The CFE was established to support the development of SMHS as a national leader in innovative education and training by advancing the scholarship and practice of teaching and learning.
Learn more about the Center for Faculty Excellence.
