Abstract: The use of Virtual Patient (VP) across various settings in medical education incorporates interactive activities to promote interactive learning. Instructional interventions provided by VP emphasize students’ understanding and knowledge integration. Case-based learning in the form of VP simulations is considered to be an appropriate teaching modality for clinical reasoning skills. Despite VP having been widely adopted in medical and health profession education, its potential to enhance students’ collaborative and reflective skills in supporting interprofessional education (IPE) is poorly maximized. VP development to facilitate IPE in medical and health professions education remains limited. This study aimed to develop design principles for a web-based VP simulation for interprofessional learning. We conducted a literature review to discover essential aspects to consider during the VP development. Characteristics from existing VP simulations were included in the design process combined with the Four Core Competencies for Interprofessional Collaborative Practice. In this study, we present two design principles associated with VP in IPE: (1) general user interface recommendations; and (2) features to stimulate IPE. The simple and intuitive interface presented by the VP was devoted to the students in achieving IPE competencies, including value/ethics, roles/responsibilities, interprofessional communication, and teams and teamwork. Suggested combinations of learning resources and technical requirements provided in this paper motivate educational organizations to implement a tailored approach based on institutional characteristics and student profiles.
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