While telemedicine is making a noticeable impact within hospitals and care facilities globally, it is also proving to be useful for training medical students. With nearly half of U.S. health professionals using telemedicine tools, the demand for these tools is high, and medical schools are recognizing this shift.[1] In fact, some surveys have revealed that almost 70% of medical school students have expressed a desire to have telemedicine training incorporated into their coursework. Not only are students learning the fundamentals of telehealth, but they are also gaining other critical skills for success in the medical field. Studies show that training modules that implement virtual telehealth simulations and virtual encounters improve student confidence, communication technology skills, and virtual clinical decision-making. [2] As telemedicine becomes permanent in healthcare, it is essential that medical students are adequately trained on their systems.

The growing emphasis on telemedicine has encouraged some universities to adopt virtual reality and telehealth tools as education methods. In these cases, students may observe specialty consultations and join clinical rounds virtually with specialists they otherwise would have never come into contact with. Institutions such as the University of Northampton use virtual reality headsets and telerobotic systems to create fully immersive learning experiences which replicate real life. Studies have seen that in some cases, using virtual reality and telemedicine tools to teach medical students has yielded stronger results than traditional clinical education.[3] While innovative, this method usually requires more resources and finances as opposed to conventional teaching strategies.[4] For this reason, the usage of telehealth and VR tools to teach medical students is not widespread.

Whether used as a teaching tool or something to learn, telemedicine has proven to be a driving force in healthcare. By training students how to deliver virtual care confidently, medical schools are ensuring that the next generation of healthcare providers are prepared.

Image: Medical Students at the University of Northampton Use Virtual Reality Headset and Simulations Imitating Real Clinical Settings (Pottle, 2019)

  1. Chang E, Penfold RB, Berkman ND. Patient Characteristics and Telemedicine Use in the US, 2022. JAMA Netw Open. 2024 Mar 4;7(3):e243354. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.3354. PMID: 38517438; PMCID: PMC12285594. ↑

  2. Albahri, A.H., Alnaqbi, S.A., Alnaqbi, S.A. et al. Telemedicine perception and interest among medical students at the University of Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, 2023. BMC Med Educ 23, 892 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-023-04859-0 ↑

  3. Pottle J. Virtual reality and the transformation of medical education. Future Healthc J. 2019 Oct;6(3):181-185. doi: 10.7861/fhj.2019-0036. PMID: 31660522; PMCID: PMC6798020. ↑

  4. Quah TCS, Lau Y, Ang WW, Lau ST. Experiences of immersive virtual reality in healthcare clinical training for nursing and allied health students: A mixed studies systematic review. Nurse Educ Today. 2025 May;148:106625. doi: 10.1016/j.nedt.2025.106625. Epub 2025 Feb 13. PMID: 39965296. ↑