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Medical Education predictions for 2025
Some predictions for educational technology in healthcare in 2025.
Mixed Reality (MR)
The hardware for mixed / augmented / virtual reality is becoming more accessible and with it the opportunity for applications.
There are many examples of educational technology businesses in this space - Osso VR, GigXR, FundamentalVR, Virtus Tech - and papers.
Asoodar, M., Janesarvatan, F., Yu, H. et al. Theoretical foundations and implications of augmented reality, virtual reality, and mixed reality for immersive learning in health professions education. Adv Simul 9, 36 (2024).
Mühling, T., Späth, I., Backhaus, J. et al. Virtual reality in medical emergencies training: benefits, perceived stress, and learning success. Multimedia Systems 29, 2239–2252 (2023).
Neher, A.N., Bühlmann, F., Müller, M. et al. Virtual reality for assessment in undergraduate nursing and medical education – a systematic review. BMC Med Educ 25, 292 (2025).
Mixed reality will continue to be a promising area of growth and practical application in simulation and skills-based learning in medical education.
Agentic AI
We spent a lot of time at OnExamination looking at how to optimize the learning paths of doctors preparing for postgraduate examinations. We got knee-high in statistics, python code, and algorithms but it was before the current AI breakthroughs with Large Language Models (and we didn't have banks of GPUs).
Agentic AI - linking systems and using multiple scenarios - to create artificially intelligent 'agents' is being widely discussed in education. In fact it has been discussing agency for sometime - "To be an agent is to influence the course of events by one's actions." Albert Bandura, 2017. How AI might support (or replace - or is it displace?) human agency is an area of great interest.
In 2025 Agentic AI may make progress in automating administrative tasks for medical education programmes and perhaps make better suggestions for collaboration with other learners, but probably not fulfil the promise of personalised learning paths, or adaptation to individual learners.
Conversational AI
Could improved AI that engages in authentic conversation - and remember a lot of what it has discussed with the same learner before, and challenge the learner - narrow the gap in performance between 1:1 tutoring and other forms of learning? This challenge - the 2 Sigma problem - laid down by Benjamin Bloom in the 1980s is what a lot of elearning development has been trying to achieve.
The astonishing advances in the conversation and safety of discussion in generative AI in the past year would suggest that this may be something that could be achieved.
Should we get started now with whatever AI tools we have available to us and get used to working as the 'human in the loop'?
Eachempati, P., Supe, A., Kumbargere Nagraj, S. et al. Integrating AI with healthcare expertise: Introducing the Health Care Professional-In-The-Loop Framework: Part 1. BDJ In Pract 38, 51–53 (2025)
I'm sceptical. In 2025 Conversational AI will make great advances for many learners but still won't be reliable for the specialist learners in medical education.
The (continuing) battle for platform LMS
Examples of businesses in this space are:
Relias - a healthcare workforce learning platform.
MedShr Learning - a peer-to-peer learning management system
Xpeer - a community designed for collaborative learning
There could be a breakthrough in 2025 with one - perhaps peer to peer - system gaining ground on the dominant medical education platforms.
Micro-learning
Will micro learning become even shorter? No, but it's effective.
Monib WK, Qazi A, Apong RA. Microlearning beyond boundaries: A systematic review and a novel framework for improving learning outcomes. Heliyon. 2024 Dec 20;11(2):e41413.
However, there's a problem. The learning moment for this is in the flow of work and electronic health records, search engines, or well-organised guidelines at a healthcare organisation have the monopoly of that opportunity. See ERP below.
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)
Real time insights from electronic healthcare records with integrated analytics could allow learning to be planned around patient needs, critical incidents, and clinical risks.
There are large vendors in this area - for example:
Cornerstone - a human resources and training software company
Healthstream Learning - a healthcare training LMS
However, it could be "déjà vu all over again".
Rose, C., Chen, J.H. Learning from the EHR to implement AI in healthcare. npj Digit. Med.7, 330 (2024).
Many contracts will be signed and fees paid to consultants to integrate ERP systems in 2025 but there will be little in the way of innovation in education and it risks adding to the burden of healthcare staff having to validate suggested actions / reports / summaries.
Image by WOKANDAPIX from Pixabay
learning ai reality healthcare education erp learners medical
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