Virtual simulations, also called screen-based simulations or virtual simulation games, are “the recreation of reality depicted on a computer screen” that “injects humans in a central role by exercising motor control skills, decision skills, or communication skills.”1 This includes virtual patient simulators, which are “a computer program that simulates real-life clinical scenarios in which the learner acts as a health care provider obtaining a history and physical exam, and making diagnostic and therapeutic decisions.”2
This is distinguished from virtual reality simulations, which require the use of specialized head-mounted displays.
List of Virtual Simulation Platforms
This is not intended to be a comprehensive list but a collection of platforms we have identified. If you know of something missing, please add a comment below and we will update the list.
| Platform | Type* | Scope/Focus | Lang | Authoring interface? | Licensing | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anesthesia SimSTAT from CAE | Responsive | Anesthesia | En | No | Commerical | |
| Body Interact (available in Canada from Nasco Healthcare) | Responsive | Multiple professions | Multi | Yes | Commerical | |
| Virtual Healthcare Experience from Ryerson University, Centennial College & George Brown College | Branching | Nursing | En | No | Free | |
| Video-Based Virtual Games from CAN-Sim | Branching | Nursing | Bi | No | Requires membership (some free) | |
| Affinity Learning | Linear, branching | Multiple professions | En | Yes | Commercial; free ‘community’ portal | |
| CyberPatient | Exploratory | Medicine | En | No | Commercial | |
| Immersive Healthcare | Virtual world | Multiple professions | En | No | Commercial | |
| OpenLabyrinth | Branching | Multiple professions | En | Yes | Open source | |
| PeriopSim | Procedural | OR Nursing | En | No | Commercial | |
| PureMedSim | Physiology | Physiology, medicine, pharmacy | En | No | Commercial | |
| Reach gamified learning | Linear, branching | Interprofessional | En | Yes | Commercial | |
| Stilwell Canada from Humber College | Collaborative | Interprofessional | En | No | Academic | |
| Turbulent Sky from Red River College | Virtual world | Disaster response | En | No | Free | |
| Virtual Interactive Case system by PIE at University Health Network | Exploratory | Medicine, nursing, pharmacy | En | Yes | Commercial (non-profit) | |
| abcdeSIM from the Virtual Medical School | Responsive | Medicine, nursing | En | No | Commercial | |
| Acadicus | Virtual world | Medicine | En | Yes | Commercial | |
| Aquifer | Linear | Medicine, nursing, osteopathy | En | No | Commercial (non-profit) | |
| BreakAway Games – several platforms | Various | Medicine, Paramedicine, Nursing, Dentistry, Optometry, others | En | Yes | Commercial | |
| CASUS Virtual Patients | Linear | Medicine | En | Yes | Commercial (non-profit) | |
| Corsmed MRI Simulator | Various | MRI & Radiography | En | No | Commercial | |
| DecisionSim by Kynectiv | Branching | Medicine | En | Yes | Commercial | |
| Digital Clinical Experiences by Shadow Health | Exploratory | Nursing, pharmacy, geronotology | En | No | Commercial | |
| DiscourseLLC Virtual Patient | Exploratory | Medicine (focus on surgery) | En | No | Commercial | |
| DrSim by Accurate Solutions | Responsive | Medicine | En | Yes | Commercial | |
| DxR Virtual Clinician and DxR Nursing Select | Exploratory | Medicine, nursing, physiotherapy, chiropractic | En | Yes | Commercial | |
| FullCode Emergency Room Simulator | Responsive | Acute care | En | No | Commercial | |
| i-Human Patients by Kaplan | Exploratory | Medicine, nursing | En | No | Commercial | |
| InSimu Patient | Exploratory | Medicine | En | No | Commercial | |
| Kognito | Communication | Medicine, nursing | En | No | Commercial | |
| MedActiV by SimforHealth | Exploratory | Medicine | Bi | Yes | Commercial | |
| Medcases Virtual Patient | Exploratory | Medicine | Multi | Yes | Free and Commercial | |
| MedEdQR | Exploratory | Medicine | En | Yes | Commercial | |
| MedSims by WebMD/Medscape | Exploratory | Medicine | En | No | Commercial | |
| medspace.VR | Virtual world | Radiography | En | No | Commercial | |
| OpenSimulator | Virtual world | Multiple professions | En | Yes | Open source | |
| Otis the Virtual Patient by Innoforce | Exploratory | Audiology | En | No | Commercial | |
| Oxford Medical Simulation Distance | Exploratory | Medicine, nursing | En | No | Commercial | |
| PCS Spark can be used through a web browser | Communication | Multiple professions; focus on communication | En | Yes | Commercial | |
| Practical Clinical Skills | Linear | Multiple professions; core clinical assessment | En | No | Free | |
| Real Life from ATI | Branching | Nursing | En | No | Commercial | |
| safeMedicate | Med admin calculations | Nursing (safe medication practices) | En | No | Commercial | |
| Sentinel U | Virtual world, exploratory | Nursing | En | No | Commercial | |
| SIMTABS | Exploratory | Medicine | En | Yes | Commercial | |
| SIMTICS | Procedural | Multiple professions | En | No | Commercial | |
| SimTutor Author | Procedural, branching | Multiple professions | En | Yes | Commercial | |
| Simucase | Exploratory, procedural | Audiology, SLP, Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy | En | No | Commercial | |
| SimulationIQ IPE & SimPHARM from EMS | Physiology / pharmacology | Interprofessional / Pharmacy | En | Yes | Commercial | |
| Swift River Virtual Clinicals | Linear | Nursing | En | No | Commercial | |
| uChoose from the University of the West of England | Branching | Multiple professions; existing focus on medicine | En | Yes | Free | |
| USC Standard Patient from the University of South Carolina | Communication | Medicine | En | Yes | Free | |
| vClinical from NurseThink | Linear | Nursing | En | No | Commercial | |
| Virtual Clinical Excursions and other platforms from Elsevier | Exploratory | Nursing, Medical office admin | En | No | Commercial | |
| vSim for Nursing from Laerdal and Wolters-Kluwer | Exploratory | Nursing | En | No | Commercial |
* For a review of this classification see Virtual Patients – Review of Pedagogical and Technological Options – adapted from Kononowicz AA, Zary N, Edelbring S, Corral J, Hege I. Virtual patients – what are we talking about? A framework to classify the meanings of the term in healthcare education. BMC Med Educ. 2015;15(1):11. doi:10.1186/s12909-015-0296-3
Promotions & Discounts During COVID-19
Here we list special cases, discounts, promotions and resources that simulation suppliers are offering during the pandemic. Again, this list is not exhaustive and we add items as we identify them. If we aere missing something, please contact us.
Body Interact (available in Canada from Nasco Healthcare). Free COVID cases available here. Contact >
vSim for Nursing from Laerdal and Wolters-Kluwer – educational trial licenses and emergency subscription discounts. Contact: Laerdal • Wolters Kluwer
Affinity Learning – up to 5 users and 10 modules are free
Oxford Medical Simulation Distance – free 60-day access to 5 cases
DxR Nursing SELECT – special 3-month trial subscription during COVID-19 closures
PCS Spark – Three free cases are available, including one on COVID. Access >
MedActiV from SimforHealth – free access to create and disseminate virtual sims related to COVID-19.
medspace.VR – free remote access license for students included with institutional license
SimEMR and Virtual MedsManager from kbPort – both free access during the pandemic. More >
SonoSim ultrasound simulation – free and discounted access to online courses and virtual U/S simulator
HumanSim Sedation & Airway – 10 free scenarios during COVID (PC only)
Supporting Resources for Virtual Patients
thispersondoesnotexist.com – uses AI to create realistic human faces, so you can adopt a face for your patient without having to use an image of a real person. Reload the page for a new face.
Resources & Advice to Enable Distance Simulations
See our page on Facilitating Simulations at a Distance for lists of resources and platforms.
Free COVID-19 Virtual Patients
We are compiling links to free virtual sims on COVID-19 per se on our COVID-19 Resources page.
1. Lioce L. (Ed.), Downing D., Chang T.P., Robertson J.M., Anderson M., Diaz D.A., and Spain A.E. (Assoc. Eds.) and the Terminology and Concepts Working Group (2020), Healthcare Simulation Dictionary –Second Edition. Rockville, MD: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; January 2020. AHRQ Publication No. 20-0019. DOI: https://doi.org/10.23970/simulationv2
2. ibid