Department of Family Medicine, School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein.
Afr J Prim Health Care Fam Med. 2020 Jul 6;12(1):e1-e7. doi: 10.4102/phcfm.v12i1.2341.
Assessment should form an integral part of curriculum design in higher education and should be robust enough to ensure clinical competence.
This article reports on current assessment practices and makes recommendations to improve clinical assessment in the undergraduate medical programme at the University of the Free State.
A descriptive cross-sectional study design was used. Qualitative and quantitative data were gathered by means of open- and closed-ended questions in a self-administered questionnaire, which was completed by teaching and learning coordinators in 13 disciplines.
All disciplines in the undergraduate medical programme are represented. They used different assessment methods to assess the competencies required of entry-level healthcare professionals. Workplace-based assessment was performed by 30.1% of disciplines, while multiple-choice questions (MCQs) (76.9%) and objective structured clinical examinations (OSCEs) (53.6%) were the main methods used during formative assessment. Not all assessors were well prepared for assessment, with 38.5% never having received any formal training on assessment. Few disciplines (15.4%) made use of post-assessment moderation as a standard practice, and few disciplines always gave feedback after assessments.
The current assessment practices for clinical students in the undergraduate medical programme at the University of the Free State cover the spectrum that is necessary to assess all the different competencies required. Multiple-choice questions and OSCEs, which are valid and reliable assessment methods, are used frequently. Poor feedback and moderation practices should be addressed. More formative assessments, and less emphasis on summative assessment, should be considered. Workplace-based and continuous assessments may be good ways to assess clinical competence.
评估应成为高等教育课程设计的一个组成部分，并且应该足够强大，以确保临床能力。
本文报告了当前的评估实践，并就如何改进南非自由州大学本科医学课程的临床评估提出了建议。
采用描述性的横断面研究设计。通过开放式和封闭式问题，以自填式问卷的形式收集了定性和定量数据，该问卷由 13 个学科的教学和学习协调员填写。
本科医学课程的所有学科都有代表。他们使用不同的评估方法来评估入门级医疗保健专业人员所需的能力。30.1%的学科进行了基于工作场所的评估，而 76.9%的学科使用多项选择题（MCQs）和 53.6%的学科使用客观结构化临床考试（OSCEs）进行形成性评估。并非所有评估者都对评估做好了充分的准备，其中 38.5%的人从未接受过任何正式的评估培训。只有少数学科（15.4%）将评估后调整作为标准做法，而少数学科在评估后总是给予反馈。
南非自由州大学本科医学课程中对临床学生的当前评估实践涵盖了评估所有不同所需能力的必要范围。经常使用多项选择题和 OSCEs 等有效和可靠的评估方法。应解决反馈和调整不佳的问题。应考虑增加形成性评估，减少总结性评估的重视。基于工作场所和连续性评估可能是评估临床能力的好方法。
