A patient safety objective structured clinical examination.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Patient Safety
• Healthcare Quality Improvement

Background:

• International emphasis on core competencies for healthcare workers.
• Patient safety and quality are critical components of healthcare education.
• Need for effective assessment methods for patient safety curricula.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and implement an Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE).
• To evaluate the impact of a patient safety curriculum on resident performance.

Main Methods:

• A patient safety curriculum was implemented in a family medicine residency program (47 trainees).
• An OSCE was administered to trained residents, incoming residents, and residents from a neighboring program.
• Standardized patient and chart-based cases were used to assess skills.

Main Results:

• Trained residents demonstrated superior error detection and disclosure skills.
• Trained residents better identified care deficiencies and proposed solutions.
• Residents receiving "Systems Approach" training showed improved system analysis and problem-solving.

Conclusions:

• The patient safety curriculum enhanced systems thinking and a culture of safety.
• Study limitations include small sample size and suboptimal design.
• Further research is needed to validate patient safety curriculum effectiveness.