Using standardized patients to evaluate undergraduate medical students' proficiency in speaking English.
OBJECTIVE
To explore the use of standardized patients for evaluating medical student's proficiency in speaking English.


METHODS
In 1995, using a language rating scale constructed by the authors, six standardized patients evaluated the English-language proficiencies of 127 second-year medical student undergraduates enrolled at the University of Adelaide, Australia, many of whom were from a non-English speaking background.


RESULTS
An earlier standardized test (Screening Test for Adolescent Language) had identified approximately one third of the students as potentially experiencing difficulties in using English in their training. Students so identified were rated lower than were their peers by the standardized patients.


CONCLUSIONS
The study proved useful both in identifying aspects of speech that can be reasonably rated by standardized patients and also in identifying students who might benefit from language interventions. Replication studies with the new instrument are required to further establish its reliability, validity, and generalizability across different student cohorts.
Chur-Hansen
A
A
Department of Psychiatry at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, Faculty of Health Sciences, Medical School, University of Adelaide, South Australia. achurhansen@medicine.adelaide.edu.au
Vernon-Roberts
J
J
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001208:Asia / Q000208:ethnology; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003142:Communication; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D007802:Language; D007807:Language Tests; D008296:Malaysia / Q000208:ethnology; D008297:Male; D009633:Nonverbal Communication; D016544:Patient Simulation; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013021:South Australia; D013060:Speech; D013065:Speech Intelligibility; D013337:Students, Medical; D014825:Vocabulary