Student Perceptions of a Unique Interprofessional Objective Structured Clinical Examination
Purpose
The purpose of this presentation is to introduce participants to a unique and innovative teaching strategy: an inter-professional (IPE) Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) performed by Physician Assistants (PA) and Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) students. Secondly, to report the student perceptions of the event which were recorded with a new assessment tool entitled Inter-professional Education at Campbell University Activity Evaluation (IPECUAE).
Methods/Description:
The Inter-professional Education Collaborative (IPEC) was formed to promote and encourage IPE learning experiences that build on each professionÕs disciplinary competencies and prepare future health professionals for team-based care of patients and improved population health outcomes.1 In response to this call, the PA and DPT programs at Campbell University have developed a unique OSCE experience. OSCEÕs are used to evaluate clinical competencies and performance that are not adequately assessed through written examinations.2,3 This time limited examination requires the DPT and PA students to work collaboratively to perform an evaluation and establish a plan of care with a trained simulated patient presenting with musculoskeletal complaints. Following the OSCE, students debrief as a group, watch a video of their examination, reflect on their performance and write an initial examination note. The students are also asked to voluntarily complete the IPECUAE. The IPECUAE is an evaluation tool that is tailored to the unique needs and characteristics of Campbell UniversityÕs health sciences programs. The tool is based on IPEC guidelines,1 KirkpatrickÕs Four Levels of Training Evaluation,4 and known factors that influence student perceptions of IPE events.5 The survey, administered through SurveyMonkey and accessed through a QR code, consists of 11 questions that are answered on a 4-point Likert scale with an opportunity to write comments.
Results/Outcomes:
Over 70% of students completed the post-OSCE survey. Data analysis was performed with SPSS version 24 (IBM Corp. Armonk, New York, USA). There were no significant differences in responses between the PA and DPT students using the non-parametric Mann-Whitney U Test. A Wilcoxon Signed-Ranks Test revealed significant differences from pre-OSCE to post-OSCE for all 6 questions related to the studentsÕ level of confidence with regards to IPE education, collaboration, roles and responsibilities, and communication (p < .001). The high student response rate and positive shift in IPE confidence combined with the favorable written comments demonstrate the quality and impact of this event.
Conclusions/Relevance to the conference theme:
This platform is designed to introduce academicians to the process of creating and assessing the quality of a collaborative OSCE between PA and DPT students. This innovative teaching strategy allows DPT and PA students to better understand each otherÕs abilities and roles on the health care team ultimately leading to improved patient care.