Evaluating Nurse Practitioner Students Through Objective Structured Clinical Examination

: Medical schools' use of Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) for over 30 years proves the OSCE is an objective way to assess a variety of clinical skills. This pilot study determined the feasibility of using OSCE, together with a checklist tool, to evaluate nurse practitioner (NP) students' competency in obtaining a patient's health history and performing a complete physical examination. In this descriptive study, four NP faculty viewed a prerecorded OSCE video of a student/ patient encounter and scored it using a checklist to determine the student's competency. Faculty showed a strong degree of agreement in grading competence. Findings suggest OSCEs could be an effective means of student evaluation, but revising the checklist to align with NP national competencies would make it meaningful for NP evaluation specifically.

An exploration of student midwives' experiences of the Objective Structured Clinical Examination assessment process

This paper reports on a qualitative descriptive study that explored student midwives' experiences of the Objective Structured Clinical Examination assessment process for obstetric emergencies within a university setting. The development of fundamental clinical skills is an important component in preparing students to meet the responsibilities of a midwife. There is an international concern that the transfer of midwifery education into universities may impact on the development of midwifery clinical skills. Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs) have the potential to promote integration and consolidation of skills prior to clinical placement. Twenty six students (n=36) from two midwifery programmes (BSc and Higher Diploma) participated in four focus groups and Burnard's (2006) framework was used for data analysis. Three main themes emerged following analysis: preparation for the OSCE assessment, the OSCE process and learning through simulating practice. Preparation for the OSCE's which included lectures, demonstrations, and practice of OSCE's facilitated by lecturers and by the students themselves, was considered central to the process. Learning via OSCEs was perceived to be more effective in comparison to other forms of assessment and prepared students for clinical practice. Positive aspects of the process and areas for improvement were identified. Using OSCE's increased the depth of learning for the students with the steps taken in preparation for the OSCE's proving to be a valuable learning tool. This study adds to the evidence on the use of OSCE's in midwifery education.

Assessment of clinical nurse specialists in rheumatology using an OSCE

OBJECTIVE

To introduce a new method of assessment; an observed structured clinical examination (OSCE) into a postgraduate course for rheumatology clinical nurse specialists.

METHOD

The OSCE was introduced into a physical assessment module, which focused on the nurses' ability to perform an examination of patients' shoulders, knees and hands. A modified blueprinting exercise was used to ensure adequate sampling of the different components of the syllabus. This resulted in five active stations and one rest station. The active stations included history-taking, physical examination of the shoulder, knee and hand complexes and multidisciplinary management plans. To enhance authenticity real, rather than simulated, patients were used where practical.

RESULTS

All 11 students passed all stations, the lowest score related to history-taking and the highest score related to devising a management plan. All 11 students rated the OSCE a worthwhile experience reflecting the learning outcomes of the module and recommended that the OSCE should be used to assess the next cohort of students. Eight students found the OSCE too 'anxiety-provoking' and did not want this method of assessment to be used in other modules. All examiners felt this mode of assessment was more valid than the previous assessment format of a viva on a single patient.

CONCLUSION

This was the first time an OSCE was used in a postgraduate course to assess the physical examination skills of rheumatology nurse specialists. The course faculty, examiners and students found it was a reliable and valid means of assessment.