The International Institute of Information Technology Hyderabad (IIIT-H) has set up a virtual reality (VR) facility at Osmania Medical College (OMC) to introduce advanced technology-assisted teaching.

Currently this is aimed at teaching anatomy, a basic subject for 1st year MBBS students. The facility was inaugurated by Prof. P J Narayanan, Director of IIIT-H in the presence of Dr Shashikala Reddy, Principal of OMC.

The VR tool for teaching neuroanatomy was developed as part of a project by Prof. Jayanthi Sivaswamy and her team, she being principal investigator of the project. This joint project with Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute of Medical Sciences, Thiruvananthapuram, is funded by Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) of the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India. This project also sponsored the setting up of the VR facility at OMC.

According to Prof Jayanthi Sivaswamy, "The VR solution that has been developed in this project allows teaching gross as well as radiological anatomy in an integrated manner to UG1 students. This integration is essential since radiological anatomy which is based on images is a key part of clinical practice. However, the integration has not been done so far at UG1 level." 

"Virtual Reality is the key technology behind the much-awaited Metaverse. This project makes a small beginning with Neuroanatomy wherein the parts and structures inside the brain is explained with the help of 3D imagery, interactive manipulations, etc." said Prof P J Narayanan.