Virtual immersion for training future professionals: An interview with Professor Steve Geoffrion
By Rachel Primiani
Psychoeducator and doctoral student in psychoeducation, University of Montreal, Canada | October 2023
This article first appeared in Traumag (Fall 2023), a magazine published by the Trauma Studies Center affiliated with the University of Montreal. Permission for republication was obtained from the magazine’s editors and from the author. The article was originally published in French and translated by Alexandre Lemyre, Ph.D.
To enhance the experience of students in psychoeducation at the University of Montreal, interactive simulations are presented to students to develop their intervention skills.
What are these immersive virtual simulation projects?
These are seven immersive simulations in which students have to work with a client who has adjustment difficulties. Students have to mobilize their knowledge and skills, and respond to a realistic situation. They are involved in all stages of the intervention: the first contact, observing the natural environment, the intervention plan, and the end of the intervention.
Can you give an example of a simulation?
One of the scenes is an intervention with a client in her own home. This is an intervention context often used in psychoeducation, allowing the professional to intervene in the client’s environment. In this scene, the students can take their time, observe the environment, and immerse themselves in the intervention situation. They can click on focal points to collect exhaustive data. Among other things, they can note the presence of medicine bottles on the counter, messy laundry in the living room, and several empty alcohol bottles in the kitchen. This gives the students more information about the client and helps them develop their observation skills.
How do they interact with the clients?
During viewing, the students are presented with various intervention options. They must choose the intervention they feel is optimal to continue progressing through the simulation. For example, the simulation includes a scene in which there is tension between the client and the professional, that is, the student. The student has to make the right decisions to deescalate the situation. Several students reported finding this quite confronting. This is exactly what we wanted, as we wanted to introduce a realistic situation that they could face in their practice. This tension allows the students to practice several skills such as the observation skills mentioned above, interviewing techniques, evaluation, planning and communication, all within a learning environment.
Did the students enjoy the exercise?
The response to our first simulation was very positive. It was because of this success that we developed another simulation for the “advanced psychoeducation in a context of trauma” course. This time, it was used in an assessment context to test the students’ skills and knowledge. The simulation is designed so that the student assesses the client’s needs, then explains to the teacher the intervention he or she would implement. Based on these explanations, the teacher chooses an avenue of response. The student is then confronted with the client’s reaction to his or her interventions, enabling him or her to readjust these interventions if necessary.
Whom did you work with to set up these simulations?
We were a team including university professors, lecturers and practical training managers in psychology, psychoeducation, criminology and social work, and we also received support from the university pedagogy center. An advisor helped us with the necessary equipment and scriptwriting during and after the shoot. The pedagogy center also supported us in developing the activities surrounding the simulation.
To find out more, you can watch the full interview (in French) on the Youtube channel of the Centre de pédagogie universitaire de l’Université de Montréal.
The content of this article was last updated on October 21, 2023
