STUDENTS’ PERCEPTION OF SURGICAL OBJECTIVE STRUCTURED CLINICAL EXAMINATION (OSCE) AT DOW UNIVERSITY OF HEALTH SCIENCES

Objective: To determine the student’s perception of reliability and validity ofSurgical Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) in Dow Universityof Health Sciences. Methodology: Total 109 third year students of Dow International Medical Collegevoluntarily and anonymously completed a self-administered questionnaire atthe end of the OSCE examination from January 2012 to March 2013. Mainoutcome measures were student perception of examination attributes (whichincluded the quality of instructions and organization, the quality of performance,authenticity and transparency of the process). Results: OSCE was considered as a fair examination method by 76% students.More than half of the students rated this examination as one covering widerange of knowledge (86%), clinical competence (72.5%), and well administeredand structured (85-87%). Sixty six percent students highlighted OSCE astool that is reliable and valid in measuring their clinical competencies. Conclusion: OSCE as a tool to evaluate clinical competence among surgicalstudents was highly appreciated by the students. Student believes that thisassessment method cover broad knowledge component and clinical competence.