Gaviña Barroso, María IsabelBermejo Franco, AlbertoUcero Lozano, RobertoMedina Sampedro, MaríaLópez Ruiz, JavierGarcía Pérez de Sevilla, Guillermo2026-07-302026-07-302026Gaviña-Barroso, M. I., Bermejo-Franco, A., Ucero-Lozano, R., Medina-Sampedro, M., López-Ruiz, J., & García-Pérez-de-Sevilla, G. (2026). Preliminary effectiveness of 360° immersive virtual reality for the acquisition of empathy-related skills in physiotherapy students: A quasi-experimental study. Medical Science Educator, 36(2), 725-735. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40670-025-02476-82156-8650https://hdl.handle.net/11268/17344Virtual reality (VR) simulation programs are emerging as valuable tools in healthcare education, offering immersive experiences that help students develop soft skills like empathy. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a 360° VR simulation in enhancing empathy among physical therapy students toward patients with acquired brain injury. The VR program could be an educational resource to improve the empathy of health sciences students and thus the future therapeutic relationship with the patient. Male participants and participants with a higher level of Spanish could be more positively affected by this VR program.spaAttribution 4.0 Internationalhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Medicina, Salud y DeportesFisioterapiaEducación en Saludjournal article10.1007/s40670-025-02476-8open accessCiencias médicasRehabilitación médicaTecnología educacionalGoal 4: Quality educationGoal 3: Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages