University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) innovators are developing new ways to teach complex concepts and improve learning outcomes through technologies that make learning more engaging, accessible, and effective.
From game-based learning platforms to virtual anatomy simulations, these inventions, supported by the Bill L. Harbert Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (HIIE), demonstrate how UAB inventions can extend beyond the laboratory and classroom to create broader impact.
eDissector
Michael J. Herr II, Ph.D., Associate Professor and Program Co-Director of Biomedical and Health Sciences at UAB developed eDissector as a workflow tool, specifically designed and trademarked by HIIE. It is primarily used within UAB’s academic and clinical programs for online, specialized training and education. 
Many of UAB's learning innovations are software-based.
The cloud-based anatomy education platform was designed as an interactive simulation tool, providing online anatomy instructions allowing students to explore anatomical structures in a digital environment for interactive training. The platform is typically leveraged by UAB’s healthcare and academic departments.
The eDissector is a digitally accessible guide to human donor dissection for anatomy education. The platform consists of dissection objectives, steps, and short videos to guide the process. There are interactive checklists of structures that should be identified and active learning elements that reinforce learning and understanding. The active learning elements consist of flash cards, matching and sorting exercises, and multiple-choice and multiple-answer questions.
Herr hopes that the platform’s impact will extend beyond anatomy education.
“I hope that more educators adopt some form of the eDissector for their course. The platform is easy to use and highly modifiable,” Herr said. “The technology can be adapted to teach laboratory procedures and hands-on skills in a wide variety of courses.”
To learn more about eDissector,
Vitals & Titles
Vitals & Titles was created to close the gap many nursing students face in taking on an enormous cognitive load while also working to master diagnoses, equipment, medications, and clinical terminology.
Vitals & Titles, created by Lauren Strouss Ed.D., M.Ed., B.S.N., RN, CNEcl, CHSE, former RN Clinical Educator at UAB School of Nursing, addresses this gap by transforming essential nursing concepts into fast-paced, collaborative word games grounded in cognitive science.
Using Taboo-style game cards, students describe key medical terms without relying on obvious clues, encouraging active recall, a deeper understanding, and teamwork. The game transforms complex nursing content into an engaging learning experience while reinforcing long-term retention.
Though Vitals & Titles was inspired by the game Taboo, Strouss also hoped the game could be an engaging and informative way of learning for nursing students.
“The inspiration for Vitals & Titles is the game Taboo, but with a nursing spin on it,” Strouss said. “I found that in the clinical setting nursing students are tired and need to find ways to connect and build team mentality and have fun at the same time.”
To learn more about Vitals & Titles
Virtual Interactive Brain Atlas (VIBA)
The Virtual Interactive Brain Atlas (VIBA) platform was developed by Hunter “Caroline” Davies, a medical student graduate student researcher in the Department of Cell, Developmental, and Integrative Biology at the UAB Heersink School of Medicine, as a research project to help medical students, clinicians, and researchers learn neuroanatomy in an interactive, organized, and clinically relevant way.
The online platform features more than 1,500 interconnected slides and over 500 practice questions that allow students to navigate through brain structures, neurological pathways, imaging, and clinical correlations at their own pace. The tool also features an MRI component, which helps students connect structures traditionally studied in the anatomy laboratory with how those same structures appear on clinical imaging.
VIBA has been incorporated into several educational programs at UAB, including medicine, dentistry, optometry, and neuroscience. Through working with the UAB Department of Neurosurgery and a research team within the Division of Pediatric Neurosurgery, the Virtual Interactive Brain Atlas for Pathology (VIBA-PATH) was developed.
While developing VIBA and VIBA-Path, Davies is thankful for the help and support from her colleagues.
“I am incredibly grateful to Dr. Inga Kadish for her mentorship and support with VIBA, as well as Dr. Brandon Rocque for his mentorship and support in the development of VIBA-PATH. Both have played such an important role in helping these projects grow,” Davies said.
Davies' hope is that VIBA continues to grow into an accessible resource that helps students feel more confident when learning neuroanatomy and neuroscience.
“In the future, I hope to continue expanding VIBA and VIBA-PATH through collaboration with students, educators, clinicians, and researchers,” Davies said. “Ultimately, I would love for these tools to support different learning styles, make challenging concepts feel more approachable, and inspire greater interest in neuroscience and the care of patients with neurological conditions.”
To learn more about VIBA,
Kaizen Education
The Kaizen Education Training platform, developed through a collaborative partnership between the Center for Clinical and Translational Science (CCTS) and the Research and Informatics Service Center (RISC) at UAB, was created as an app-based educational gaming platform that enhances education by fostering a competitive and engaging learning environment.
The educational gaming platform was developed as an innovative quiz game. Kaizen uses friendly competition and quiz-style games to reinforce learning. The platform has trained over 2,000 investigators and is used across the UAB Heersink School of Medicine, School of Nursing, School of Dentistry and School of Public Health.
To learn more about Kaizen Education visit https://kaizen.hs.uab.edu/play/#/login.
-- Sept. 28, 2026