Gamification Concepts for a VR-based Visuospatial Training for Intraoperative Liver Ultrasound

Gamification is widely used due to its positive influence on learning by adding emotions and steering behavior. In medical VR training applications, the use of gamification is rare, and when it is implemented, it often lacks thoughtful design decisions and empirical evaluation. Using a VR-based training for intraoperative ultrasound for liver surgery, we analyzed game elements regarding their suitability and examined two in more detail: difficulty levels and a kit, where the user has to assemble a virtual liver using US. In a broad audience study, levels achieved significantly better results regarding enjoyment. Qualitative feedback from medical students directly comparing the elements revealed that they prefer the kit as well as levels for training. Our studies indicate that levels and the more interactive kit improve the learning experience, which could also be taken as a basis for similar VR-based medical training applications.