Technology infusion enhances nursing education at UT Arlington

The University of Texas at Arlington’s innovative 150,000-square-foot Smart Hospital/School of Social Work Building sets the standard for nursing education in Texas. 

The facility, which opened in 2023, features dozens of medical robots capable of simulating a wide variety of situations and conditions, including heart attacks, strokes, respiratory distress—even childbirth. The immersive tools allow students the chance to best prepare for what they can expect in the workforce. 

The Smart Hospital also has 25 virtual reality (VR) headsets that provide students with three levels of course experience. Thanks to the VR environment, UT Arlington nursing students can experience simulation training in everything from mental health crises to trauma-care scenarios such as cardiac arrest, in which students must shock their patients with virtual defibrillators. 

Clinical Assistant Professor Jennifer Roye, who is also assistant dean of simulation and technology in UTA’s College of Nursing and Health Innovation , said Smart Hospital technology allows students to expand their thinking.  

“That’s what simulations are about,” Roye said. “You have a safe area where you can practice these skills.” 

Though located in the heart of the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, the Smart Hospital—and UTA as a whole—is also emphasizing the medical needs of rural Texans. In 2024, UTA became the nation’s first university to use a new type of virtual immersion room as a nurse training tool. 

The Igloo Immersion Room is a 13-foot-by-13-foot space made of screens that transports nursing students to anywhere their care skills could be needed, all in a safe, supervised space. Housed under UTA’s Center for Rural Health and Nursing, the Igloo primarily trains students on unique rural health situations, which can range from home health visits to more serious incidents. 

“Our nursing students already use simulation in all of their clinical practice during nursing school, but this was a way for them to be able to get something that no other school has,” said Aspen Drude, manager of the Center for Rural Health and Nursing.  

UTA President Jennifer Cowley notes that the Igloo is just the latest example of UTA’s commitment to leading on the forefront of nursing education. 

“UTA is known for its innovation and the impact its nurses make across Texas,” she said. “This Igloo is one more example of our continued innovation.” 

The Smart Hospital also shares space with UTA’s School of Social Work, opening the doors to unique learning opportunities for students looking to serve others. 

“Collaborative work within this building will set the stage for the future of health care and social work,” says Tamara L. Brown, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs. “We know that when professionals in social work and nursing collaborate, patients have better outcomes.” 

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