OSCEr (OSCE-review) is a freely-accessible, self-paced app made for medical students – by students – to help learn clinical skills and practice for OSCEs. This comprehensive app integrates diverse resources (like the Essentials of Clinical Examination Handbook and clinicalskillstoronto.com) and features checklists to practice history-taking, physical exams, or combined history and physicals – all while keeping track of progress.
Users can focus on a body-system of interest, within which they can choose a specific assessment to either practice or test themselves under timed conditions (OSCE style), with or without hints or explanations. As each exam is completed, areas of competency and those needing further practice are highlighted, enabling a targeted approach to study and helping to make learning clinical skills both more efficient and enjoyable.
Instructions:
1. Find an exam:
• Select an organ from the main page (e.g. Neurology), use the search-bar to find an exam directly or use the ‘Quick Test’ button to do a random test.
• If an organ-system is chosen, see all exam checklists belonging to that category.
• If attempted before in ‘test’ mode, a progress-bar is shown next to the exam name with the average score achieved over all attempts.
2. Customize test/practice options:
• Select a checklist (e.g. Headache) to see options before practicing/testing
• Choose whether to be in test-mode (timed/scored vs. practice-mode) or show hints (explanations for each point).
• Choose to do a history, physical, or combined history/physical checklist depending on the exam.
• See details about previous test attempts, including number of attempts, score of last attempt, and average score of all attempts.
• Select ‘Detailed Progress’ to see a point-by-point breakdown of previous attempts and a list of scores/times of all attempts.
3. Practice/Test an exam:
• Choose ‘Start Test or Practice’ to begin the test/practice checklist
• For each point (e.g. ‘Patient’s general appearance’) select done correctly (solid circle), with omissions (half circle) or incomplete (empty circle).
• Once finished, score and time data are saved for progress tracking and later review.
Acknowledgements:
App Design Team:
• Team Leader: Arjun Balachandar
• Programmers: Ahmad Alhashemi (iOS), Zubair Baig (Android)
• Designers: Matan Berson, Sonia Seto
• Content Development: Adrian Cozma, Kota Talla
ECEH Executive Team:
• Yuhao Shi, Brandon Tang, Zahra Sohani, Florentina Teoderascu
Checklist authors – Clinical Skills Toronto:
• Adrian Cozma (checklist leader), Mathew Patenaude, Josephine DAbbondanza, Arti Dhoot, Emily Patterson, Preeni Rathuge, Fady Sedarous, Erene Stergiopoulos, Kazim Giby, Cecilia Alvarez-Veronesi, Ahmed Zaki, Joel Gupta, Groonie Tang