Serious Games in Medical Education : as Learning Tools

Serious Games are used widely in different fields (aviation, military,etc). Two drivers are the evolution of VR and the perception of education as learner-centred practice. Games have the potential of making education more learner-centred, easier, more enjoyable, more interesting and thus more effective. The main research question is how Serious Games can enhance medical learning? A SG is “any computerized game whose chief mission is not entertainment and all entertainment games which can be reapplied to a different mission other than entertainment.” The research methodology consists of a qualitative approach. The key intriguing results show that: •A convergence takes between simulation and serious games, but the most distinguishing factor between both is the lack of fun in case of simulations; •The most important perceived advantages of SG are: fun and flow-state as motivation driver, safe environment for high-stake actions, immediate, unbiased system feedback, especially well-suited to learn knowledge (factual and procedural) and partial task (but not complex operations); •Dissection/Vivisection will remain the best method to train surgeon; •SG are not yet ready for the 3D-VR trend (OculusRift, Hololens); •All experts agreed that SG have the potential to be an effective, assisting learning tool.