The effect of virtual reality-based disaster education given to nursing students on disaster preparedness: Randomized controlled study

The study was conducted with a parallel group randomized controlled experimental design to determine the effect of virtual reality-based disaster preparedness training on the level of disaster preparedness in nursing students. The population of the study consisted of students studying in the nursing department of a university. The study was completed with 67 nursing students (intervention: 33, control: 34). "Introductory Information Form", 'Disaster Preparedness Information Questionnaire', 'Disaster Preparedness Skills Form', 'Disaster Readiness Scale (DRS)' and 'Psychological Preparedness for Disaster Threat Scale (PPDTS)' were used to collect the data. In the study, virtual reality simulation was applied to the nursing students in the intervention group in addition to the standard disaster training for 4 weeks, with each session lasting 50 minutes, while the standard training was applied to the nursing students in the control group. Data collection tools were applied to all groups before the intervention (pre-test), after the completion of the intervention (post-test) and at the 8th week (follow-up test). Chi-square test, mixed design ANOVA and Bonferroni multiple comparison test were used to analyze the data. It was determined that there was no statistically significant difference between the intervention group and the control group in terms of disaster preparedness knowledge and skill levels, DRS and PPDTS pre-test mean scores (p>0.05). In the post-test (post-test) and follow-up (8th week) test of the nursing students in the intervention group, it was found that the mean scores of disaster preparedness knowledge and skill levels, DRS and PPDTS total scores increased statistically significantly (p<0.001) compared to the control group. As a result of the study, it was determined that virtual reality-based disaster preparedness training was an effective method to improve disaster preparedness levels compared to standard training methods. In this context, it is recommended to use virtual reality technology in disaster preparedness education process and disaster nursing curriculum planning. Keywords: Virtual reality, simulation, disaster preparedness, psychological preparedness, nursing education, nursing students