title: Objective structured clinical evaluation of clinical competence: an integrative review.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This paper presents an integrative literature review conducted to describe the utility of the objective structured clinical evaluation (OSCE) as a strategy of measuring one form of clinical competence in nursing.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  The emergence of the OSCE, one form of evaluation of clinical competence used in medicine, is gaining more scrutiny and consideration in nursing education.
  
  
  METHODS
  The review was conducted through an initial search of computerized databases CINAHL, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Academic Search Premier and MEDLINE for the period from 1960 to 2008.
  
  
  METHODS
  An integrative review was performed and 41 papers met the inclusion criteria.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The complexities of evaluating clinical competence can be addressed through use of an OSCE process. Concerns related to the conceptual limitations and the lack of psychometric properties of the tools available for measurement in nursing education have been identified.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Major gaps exist in the nursing literature regarding the examination of the psychometric properties of the OSCE, the suitability of the design of the OSCE structure and tools for nursing to measure clinical competency, and the associated costs in the application of this evaluative method. Research conducted on the psychometric properties of the OSCE tool used and correlations to other evaluative methods currently used to evaluate nursing clinical competence would inform educational practices.
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing, Northern College of Applied Arts and Technology, Timmins, Ontario, Canada. walshm@northern.on.ca
authors.forename: Mireille
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Walsh
authors.forename: Patricia Hill
authors.initials: PH
authors.lastname: Bailey
authors.forename: Irene
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Koren
mesh_terms: D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000592:standards* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D004506:Education, Nursing / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D015397:Program Evaluation; D011594:Psychometrics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results