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Nurse educators' perceptions of OSCE as a clinical evaluation method.
1Nursing Science Department, RAU.
Curationis
|March 12, 2002
Summary
The Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) has mixed reviews from South African nurse educators. While it has benefits, it does not holistically assess clinical competence, suggesting a need for varied assessment methods in nursing education.
Area of Science:
- Nursing Education
- Clinical Competence Assessment
Background:
- South African Qualification Authority and Nursing Council aim for quality nursing education.
- Focus on critical thinking, rational decision-making, and problem-solving is essential.
- Holistic assessment of clinical competence is key for autonomous practice.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore nurse educators' perceptions of Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) as a clinical evaluation method.
- To understand the strengths and weaknesses of OSCE in nursing colleges affiliated with a Gauteng university.
Main Methods:
- Qualitative, descriptive research strategy.
- Purposive sampling of twenty nurse educators from three nursing colleges.
- Three focus group interviews and descriptive content analysis.
Main Results:
- OSCE presents both positive and negative aspects regarding administration, evaluators, learners, procedures, and evaluation.
- Nurse educators identified challenges and benefits associated with OSCE implementation.
- A significant finding is that OSCE does not holistically measure clinical competence.
Conclusions:
- OSCE has limitations in holistically assessing clinical competence in nursing learners.
- Recommendations include addressing negative perceptions and strengthening positive aspects of OSCE.
- Varied alternative assessment methods are needed for holistic measurement of clinical competence.