Virtual Reality Resources for Health Sciences

The Virtual Reality Studio is a space that facilitates the use and exploration of virtual worlds for education, research, and patient care. The space is free to all University of Minnesota Twin Cities faculty, students, and staff.

Learn about Embodied Labs, Primal VR, and other apps in the Virtual Reality Studio, HSEC 5-132.

View open hours, make an appointment, or sign up for workshops on our Virtual Reality services page.

If you are interested in planning a class visit or special event using these resources, contact lib-maker-vr@umn.edu.

Embodied Labs is an immersive learning and training solution in virtual reality.  The immersive nature of the labs means that users may have trouble hearing audio, or your vision may be impacted depending on the experience. This is all intentional to provide a first-person perspective. 

The immersive nature of the labs may be triggering. 

Experiences offered:

• Alfred: a 74-year-old African American man with macular degeneration and high-frequency hearing loss. Alfred spends time with family, visits the doctor, and receives a diagnosis.
• Beatriz: a middle-aged Latina woman with progressive Alzheimer’s Disease that causes changes in her brain. The lab includes experiences from the onset of symptoms to late-stage disease and the transition to residential care.
• Clay: a 66-year-old veteran with stage IV, terminal lung cancer. As Clay comes to terms with the reality of his diagnosis he transitions to hospice care and enters the final stage of his life.
• Eden: a trans woman who experiences a series of personal encounters throughout her lifespan. In a second module Eden engages with other members of the LGBT community.
• Frank: a 72-year old Caucasian man, whose wife passed away a few months ago and Frank is attempting to navigate his new way of life. A second module allows learners to embody Frank, but this time with a supportive social environment.

Embodied labs is only available in the Virtual Reality Studio HSEC 5-132 and can be accessed during open hours or by appointment.

Primal VR is a fully immersive, interactive and engaging virtual environment for teaching and learning anatomy.

To access Primal VR, check out a Meta Quest 2 headset from the Health Sciences Library and follow these video instructions. You can also meet with a VR specialist by appointment or drop by the Virtual Reality Studio (HSEC 5-132) during open hours.