An exploratory analysis of factors contributing to resident pass rates on a national licensure OSCE in the United Arab Emirates

Halah Ibrahim; Thana Harhara; Reima Al Marshoodi; Ashraf Kamour; Satish C Nair

doi:10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_332_20

An exploratory analysis of factors contributing to resident pass rates on a national licensure OSCE in the United Arab Emirates

J Family Med Prim Care. 2020 Jul 30;9(7):3470-3473. doi: 10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_332_20. eCollection 2020 Jul.

Authors

Halah Ibrahim¹, Thana Harhara¹, Reima Al Marshoodi¹, Ashraf Kamour¹, Satish C Nair²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Medicine, Sheikh Khalifa Medical City, Abu Dhabi, UAE.
² Department of Academic Affairs, Tawam Hospital Johns Hopkins Medicine, College of Medicine, UAE University, Al Ain, UAE.

Abstract

Purpose: To explore resident perceptions of factors contributing to pass rates on a high-stake licensing objective structured clinical exam (OSCE).

Materials and methods: A cross-sectional survey was administered to all 51 applicants of the April 2019 internal medicine Arab Board OSCE examination in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE), and included questions on preparedness, stress level, and prior educational experiences. Exposures were evaluated for correlation against Arab Board pass rates using Pearson correlation and the two-tailed significance was recorded.

Results: All 51 examinees completed the survey (100% response rate). Participants were primarily female n = 35 (67%) and all completed residency training in the UAE. Gender differences were noted, with higher pass rates for the male residents (13/35, 37% females vs. 8/16, 50% males, P < 0.05). Further, 65% (P < 0.001) of female examinees reported higher levels of anxiety than male residents. Examinees reported regular exposure during residency to clinical skills training (74%), standardized patients (71%), simulation (66%), and OSCEs (72%) but none of these educational modalities correlated with higher pass rates. Of multiple exam preparation modalities, only self-directed learning with deliberate practice, the intentional repetition of a task with feedback, was associated with higher pass rates.

Conclusion: Clinical exam skills are vital for trainees to deliver high-quality primary healthcare services. National licensure OSCEs have become the norm in the Arab world for assessing resident clinical exam skills. Our results suggest that residency programs should encourage residents' intentional deliberate practice and mastery learning in the acquisition and retention of physical examination techniques.

Keywords: Clinical skills; Objective Structured Clinical Examination; internal medicine; residents; self-directed learning.