New station based (OSCE) exam
in 9th semester
Associate Professor Annetine Staff
Head of examination committee, member of semester committee
Professor Kai-Håkon Carlsen
Head of semester committee, member of examination committee
Professor Per Brodal
Member of semester committee, member of examination committee
Felt for signatur(enhet, navn og tittel)
Background
• Decided by the Board of the Medical faculty,
University of Oslo
• From autumn semester 2008: written essay
examination form of 9th semester has been
exchanged with a station based (OSCE)
examination
• First station based examination for 9th semester
will be held on Wednesday the 14th of January
• Two trial exams have been held:
– Winter (11 students) and summer (26 students) 2008
When and where?
• Wednesday 14th of January 2009
• Class divided into 4 equal-sized groups (26 students in each
group)
• Rikshospitalet, Ferdighetssenteret (Skills training center)
• Groups 1+2: 8.30-12.27
– 8.30:
• Register (give your e-mail address for later feedback on
exam result)
• Get your ID number to be used throughout the exam
– 8.40-8.50: Information about exam
– 9.00: start of station exam (24 test stations and 2 rest stations)
• 3 h 27 min (7 min x 26 +1 min x 25) for each student
– 12.27: end of exam
• Group 1+2 leave together and assemble until 13.00, to prevent
contact with Group 3+4
• Groups 3+4: 12.30-16.27
– Same program as above (except allowed to leave 16.27)
Two parallel circuits of 26 stations each
• Groups 1 + 2: morning
– Downstairs (learning skill center), ”underetasje”
– First floor: ”M-etasjen” (mellom-etasjen)
• Groups 3 + 4: afternoon
– Same as above
• 26 stations:
–
–
–
–
–
9 stations gyn/obst
9 stations ped
4 stations anatomy/physiology
2 stations pathology
2 resting stations (drinking water/toilet)
Station content
•
OSCE: objective standardized clinical evaluation:
– Read the instructions carefully
– Do what you are instructed to do
• Perform an examination, a test, etc./talk to a patient/examiner/mannequin
(specified in the instruction) /fill in paper forms etc.
• If asked to communicate with a person, act as you would as a medical
doctor: be polite, introduce yourself, tell what to do etc (read instructions
and see what you are asked to do)
•
Short answer questions
– Read the instructions carefully
– Do what you are instructed to do
• Fill in paper forms etc, write short answers
• MCQ: multiple choice questions
– Read the instructions carefully
– Do what you are instructed to do (tick most probable diagnosis etc)
•
Leave paper form at station
–
face down (not to be seen by other students), will be picked up by examiners for scoring
In English or Norwegian?
• We assume most students will do most of the test in
English, as all questions are in English, but the
choice is yours!
• All station instructions are given in English
• Students may communicate with
examinator/patient/mannequin/actor in either English
or Norwegian
• Students may answer in written in either English or
Norwegian
Stations: 7 min work and 1 minute walk/rest
• 8.30: Register
• 8.40-8.50/12.40-12.50: information by examination committee
leader
• 8.50/12.50: Go to your first assigned station
– First thing when arriving at the station: Fill in your ID number or show ID
badge to examiner if no paper to fill in
• 9.00/ 13.00: First whistle:
– start working at your first station (2 students will start at a rest station)
• 9.07/13.07: Second whistle:
– stop working, leave station at once (remember ID number on paper forms)
– go to next station:
• Move according to ascending numbers: If you started at number 26,
your next station is number 1, and so forth.
• follow direction of arrows on the floor
• 9.08/13.08: Third whistle:
– start working at your second station
• 9.15/13.15: 4th whistle:
– stop working, leave for next station etc
Between work stations:
1 minute to rest/change room before next station
• 1 minute break before next whistle:
– Go to next task
– Stand with back to task until next whistle
• Exception: some rooms with closed doors may have short
information/instruction on door and you use part of the 1 minute
break to read this. Enter the room at next whistle (you then have 7
min to perform the task)
• 12.27/16.27:
– LAST whistle (double sound): exam over
– Groups 1+ 2: Move to assembly room at once, stay there until the next
two groups (3+4) have started
• Students or teachers are not allowed to remove any test
material from the exam rooms
Scoring system of exam
• Each station:
–
–
–
–
Same scoring system for all students
Examiners use a standardized, predesigned scoring system
A station constitutes 1/24 of total score (24 stations)
Questions/tasks in one station may be weighted differently
according to importance
– At OSCE stations:
• Examiner marks:
– ”failed/passed” etc for each task
– a ”global score”: e.g. Excellent, good, borderline, poor
(not passed), very poor (not passed)
Passing limits
• To pass the test:
–  50% correct score totally (mean of the 24 stations)
• as well as  50 correct score for each of the 4 subjects:
– Ped (mean of 9 stations)
– Obst/gyn (mean of 9 stations)
– Pathology (mean of 2 stations)
– Anatomy/physiology (mean of 4 stations)
• What are global assessments at OSCE stations used for?
– Intern evaluation for exam committee:
• Correlation global score and percentage score? (does excellent
performance give a high score, do students below 50% score poor
globally etc)
When will you know your result?
• Answer forms corrected by teachers on test day (14.01)
– Plotted answers electronically controlled by 16.01.08
• Exam committee meets with the class to receive feedback the
day after exam: 15.01: 13.30-15.30
– Each station is discussed, the students will evaluate the exam (orally and
scoring: ”global assessment”)
– Individual students results are not known or given
• Exam committee will meet 19.01.08
–
Reevaluate exam forms of students not passing exam
• Also by external exam sensor
• Individual results mailed to each student within few days
– After 19.01.08
If you do not attend ordinary exam 14.01.2009 or fail?
• Students who do not have a legitimate reason for being
absent from an examination are not allowed to attend the resit examination, and will be transferred to the following class.
• The following reasons qualify for a postponed examination:
– a) The student falls ill prior to the examination (this must be confirmed by
a written letter from a doctor)
– b) The student falls ill during the examination (the students must
immediately contact the Student Health Service at Blindern)
– c) Students who have not passed the previous examination
– d) Other important reasons: for example, death in the immediate family
• Resit exam: 24th of February 2009
– Oral (At the same level of difficulty as the station exam)
– If failed station based exam:
• retested in the 1-2 subjects that failed the 14th of Januar
• If failed 3-4 subjects: all 4 subject will be retested
• If do not attend resit exam, or fail:
• New ordinary station based exam in June 2009
All students are offered
station based examination training
prior to ordinary exam
• December: 1st, 3rd and 4th
GOOD LUCK TO ALL!