The Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE): AMEE Guide No. 81. Part I: An historical and theoretical perspective

Kamran Z. KhanManchester Medical School, UK; Dr KAMRAN KHAN, MBBS, FRCA, FAcadMEd, MScMedEd, at the time of production of this manuscript was Senior Teaching Fellow Manchester Medical School and Consultant Anaesthetist, LTHTR, Preston, UK. During his career Dr Khan has developed a passion for medical education and acquired higher qualification in this field alongside his parent speciality in Anaesthetics. He has held clinical academic posts, first at the University of Oxford and then at the University of Manchester. He was Associate lead for ‘Assessments’ at the Manchester Medical School. He is currently working in the UAE as a Consultant Anaesthetist. He has extensively presented and published at the national and international levels in his fields of academic interest.Correspondence[email protected]

Sankaranarayanan RamachandranLancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, UK; Dr SANKARANARAYANAN RAMACHANDRAN, MBBS, Pg Cert (MedEd), FHEA, is a Medical Education & Simulation Fellow, Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Preston, UK. He qualified in India and underwent postgraduate training in General Medicine. He had been teaching and training undergraduate and postgraduate medical students throughout his career. He has completed a Postgraduate Certificate and pursuing a Master's degree in Medical Education at the University of Manchester. He has special interest in assessment, problem-based learning and research in medical education.

Kathryn GauntLancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, UK; DR KATHRYN GAUNT, MBChB, MRCP, PGD(MedEd), at the time of production of this manuscript was a Medical Education and Simulation Fellow, LTHTR, Preston, UK. Dr Kathryn Gaunt graduated in 2002 from the University of Manchester Medical School, UK. She was a Specialty Registrar in Palliative Medicine and has a keen interest in medical education. She is currently pursuing a higher qualification in this field. She has recently taken time out of her training programme to work as a Medical Education and Simulation Fellow at the Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. Here she lectured, examined for OSCEs and was involved in research and development within the field. She has now returned to her training in Palliative Medicine.

Piyush PushkarAintree University Hospitals Trust, UK; Dr PIYUSH PUSHKAR, MBChB, works in Critical Care at the Aintree University Hospitals Trust, Liverpool, UK. Piyush qualified from the University of Edinburgh and has subsequently worked and trained in anaesthesia and critical care in Lancashire and Merseyside, as well as aeromedical retrieval medicine in Queensland, Australia. He also works as a volunteer doctor for Freedom from Torture in Manchester.

Abstract

The Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) was first described by Harden in 1975 as an alternative to the existing methods of assessing clinical performance (Harden et al. 1975). The OSCE was designed to improve the validity and reliability of assessment of performance, which was previously assessed using the long case and short case examinations. Since then the use of the OSCE has become widespread within both undergraduate and postgraduate clinical education. We recognise that the introduction of the OSCE into an existing assessment programme is a challenging process requiring a considerable amount of theoretical and practical knowledge. The two parts of this Guide are designed to assist all those who intend implementing the OSCE into their assessment systems. Part I addresses the theoretical aspects of the OSCE, exploring its historical development, its place within the range of assessment tools and its core applications. Part II offers more practical information on the process of implementing an OSCE, including guidance on developing OSCE stations, choosing scoring rubrics, training examiners and standardised patients and managing quality assurance processes. Together we hope these two parts will act as a useful resource both for those choosing to implement the OSCE for the first time and also those wishing to quality assure their existing OSCE programme.

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