Assessment in OSCE since lockdown

The assessment station in the OSCE has been changed to last only 12 minutes, during this time you will now interact with a manikin and not a real-live actor as before.

It is important to talk to the manikin and not the examiner, although it will be the voice of the examiner you will hear and respond to.

You will no longer take a full set of obs on the patient, and will in fact just verbalise each step of obs taking or assessing the GCS (Glasgow Coma Scale) of the patient.

You will still be required to accurately document and score the observations on the NEWS2 chart and escalate the findings as well as decide on an appropriate frequency of monitoring of the patient as per NEWS2 score. If it the GCS you are assessing you will need to also document accurately, and again verbalise your actions in terms of frequency of monitoring or getting the patient reviewed.

Test takers report all patient props, ie glasses, walking sticks and lighters being removed from the patient area, as they were previously part of the assessment. You are still required to use the assessment booklet or discharge from hospital form to assess the patient’s Activities of Daily Living during this station.

This station has always had the highest amount of failures in the OSCE and this continues to be a problem for nurses taking the OSCE since lockdown.

The other APIE stations, planning, implementation and evaluation continue to stay the same, over 15 minutes and in the same format.

Only good preparation and practice can prepare you for the exam. Get in touch with us if you require up-to date training and excellent support until your exam.