Kaohsiung Journal of Medical Sciences (Apr 2007)

Implementation of an OSCE at Kaohsiung Medical University

  • Yu-Sheng Huang,
  • Min Liu,
  • Chun-Hsiung Huang,
  • Keh-Min Liu

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1016/S1607-551X(09)70392-4
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 23, no. 4
pp. 161 – 169

Abstract

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The Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE), a tool to objectively and fairly assess medical students' clinical competences, has become widely used in medical education worldwide. However, most medical schools in Taiwan have just begun to adopt this assessment method. In 2003, Kaohsiung Medical University (KMU) established the first standardized patient (SP) program in Taiwan and applied SPs with an OSCE. This study reports the process of the implementation of an OSCE at KMU, which includes collecting information, visiting leading clinical skills centers, consulting medical educators from other countries, holding international conferences, establishing an OSCE committee, writing cases, training SPs, administrating the OSCE, and receiving feedback from medical students. Most students were satisfied with the assessment and appreciated the learning experience. Based on the experience in 2003, the OSCE committee decided to incorporate the OSCE into the medical curriculum as a measure to assess medical students' clinical competences. In addition to assessing medical students' clinical competence, the OSCE can also be applied to other professional health education, such as dentistry, nursing, and pharmacy. We are currently sharing our experience with other colleges at KMU.

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