Рhysical therapy graduate students' and examiners' perception of objective structured clinical examination : a feedback for process improvement

Abstract

Purpose: to analyze the first experience of administering Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) for the students (studs) enrolled in the master's degree program majoring in physical therapy at National University of Ukraine on Physical Education and Sport. Material and methods. The survey included 21 examiners (examrs) and 46 studs involved in OSCE administering. The questionnaire consisted of the questions assessing the quality of station equipment, clarity of the exam format, other aspects. Results. All the examrs informed of total clarity of the examination format, but only 13 (61.9%) of them noted a similar level of clarity for the studs. Тhe examrs identified 3 main reasons for unsuccessful attempts to perform a skill/task: insufficient training, new format of checking knowledge/examination, slightly different focus of training. The distribution of answers concerning the clarity of the format of the examination and its tasks provided by the studs did not differ statistically from those provided by the teachers. The vast maj ority of the examrs indicated that the skills were of sufficient difficulty for the purpose of the examination. 5 examrs had significant difficulties assessing skill performance according to the provided form, while 7 of them had slight difficulties and the rest had no difficulties. The majority of the studs noted that the number of stations and equipment was sufficient (no statistical differences were determined between the answers of the studs and the examrs). Conclusions. The survey revealed the need for introducing certain changes in OSCE assessment form, in the educational program, conducting special preparatory classes for studs. The obtained results can be used to improve the development of OSCE in physical therapy in Ukraine.