Assessment of competence in technical clinical skills of general practitioners

Technical clinical procedures constitute an important part of the work of general practitioners. Assessment of competence in the relevant skills is important from the perspective of quality assurance. In this study, the psychometric characteristics of three different methods for assessment of competence in technical clinical skills in general practice were evaluated. A performance-based test (8 stations), a written knowledge test of skills (125 items) and a self-assessment questionnaire (41 items) on technical clinical skills were administered to 49 GPs and 47 trainees in general practice. The mean scores on the performance-based test and the written knowledge test of skills showed no substantial differences between GPs and trainees, whereas the GPs scored higher on the self-assessment questionnaire. While the correlation of the score on the knowledge test of skills with the score on the performance-based test was moderately high, the score on the self-assessment questionnaire showed a rather low correlation with the performance-based test. Although performance-based testing is obviously the best method to assess proficiency in hands-on skills, a written test can serve as a reasonable alternative, particularly for screening and research purposes.