Timing
The Patient Care OSCE is held in the mornings in May/June of the Patient Care phase following completion of the required clerkships. Information about registration for exam dates will be sent to the class email list prior to the exam.
Content
The Patient Care OSCEs rely on the FCM benchmarks and workshops, as well as principles identified in the goals and objectives of the required clinical clerkships. Learning objectives that may be tested fall under:
- Communication Skills
- Medical Interviewing
- Physical Examination
- Diagnosis
- Management
Format
Patient Care OSCE cases differ from Foundations OSCEs in that they ask students to integrate history and examination skills with development and documentation of a logical differential diagnosis and plan. Check the Sample Patient Care OSCE Patient Note to learn more about the general format.
Patient Care OSCEs may include:
- History and physical exams with standardized patients
- Examination of mannequins
- Computerized cases
- Telemedicine cases
- Test Interpretation
- Order writing
- Patient education/counseling
A typical Patient Care OSCE case is 25 minutes long, with 2 minutes to read instructions, 14 minutes with the patient, and 9 minutes for write-up or feedback. Some cases require a write-up that is graded at a later time, while others allow for an observer to give immediate feedback to the student.
Grading and Remediation
In an encounter with a standardized patient, observers (trained standardized patients or clinicians) are evaluating your history and examination skills as well as your communication skills. For each OSCE station, you will receive a grade of Exceeds Expectations, Meets Expectations, or Needs Development. Students and their College Mentors will be notified of the results via email after all students have completed the exam. Successfully completing the Patient Care OSCE is a graduation requirement, so those students who need further development will need to undergo a remedial exam after meeting with their College Mentor/Clinical Skills Learning Specialist to review their test materials. If a student fails the Remedial OSCE, the case is remanded to the Student Progress Committee for deliberation and recommendation. Patient Care OSCE scores are not recorded in the MSPE.