Commonly Used Clinical Assessment Methods in Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences: A Five-Year Analysis 2014 - 2019

Abstract

Background: Clinical assessment of medical students is a critical component of the educational curriculum, and several methods have been proposed. Although each method has its own importance, some are more commonly applied, while others are rarely used. Objectives: This study aimed to analyze the clinical assessment methods employed at Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences (KUMS) over a five-year period. Methods: In this observational study, educational records from 19 departments of the KUMS School of Medicine were reviewed for the period 2014 - 2019. Data on assessment methods used to evaluate the clinical performance of medical students were collected using two checklists and analyzed with descriptive statistics in SPSS version 25. Results: A total of 19 educational supervisors and 195 faculty members participated in the study and completed the checklists. The most frequently used assessment methods were multiple-choice questions (MCQs, 37.9%), short answer questions (SAQs, 20%), mini-clinical evaluation exercise (Mini-CEX, 18.5%), and objective structured clinical examination (OSCE, 16.9%). At the internship level, MCQ (26.7%), short answer (12.3%), OSCE (11.3%), and Mini-CEX (11.3%) were most commonly reported as being used “always”. Conclusions: Across both clerkship and internship stages, MCQ, Mini-CEX, OSCE, and SAQs were the most commonly applied assessment methods. While each has specific advantages, none alone is sufficient to comprehensively evaluate clinical competence. Faculty members should be encouraged to learn and apply a wider variety of assessment tools to more effectively measure medical students’ clinical skills.