title: Assessing occupational therapy students' clinical competence for entry-level work-related practice.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The purpose of occupational therapy (OT) educational programs is to graduate effective clinicians who join the job market with competencies consistent with the expected entry-level practice. To attain an effective process of clinical competence development, OT educational programs design competence-based curricula to instill pre-licensure readiness in their graduating students for entry-level work-related practice.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of the study was to perform a retrospective outcome competence assessment for evaluating OT students participating in the first three consecutive offerings of a graduate seminar intended to assess and increase pre-licensure skills and knowledge required for entry-level evidence-based work-related practice. The assessment examined differences in post vs. pre-seminar National Board Certificate Occupational Therapy (NBCOT) practice test score caused by (a) main time of test-taking effect; (b) main class effect; and (c) tine and class interaction effect.
  
  
  METHODS
  62 students.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 62 students who graduated from the program during the three academic years 2008, 2009 and 2010 participated in the study.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Post vs. pre-seminar NBCOT practice test score was significantly higher across the three-year period and increased significantly in each of the three classes. Interaction effect did not alter the pattern of post vs. pre-seminar score increase in each class.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The significant time and class main effects validated the effectiveness of the seminars in increasing post vs. pre-seminar practice test score in each of the three classes. The significant time x class interaction effect validated the pattern of post vs. pre-seminar score increase regardless of the class sequence.
authors: Department of Occupational Therapy, York College, City University of New York, Jamaica, NY, USA.
authors: Tamara
authors: T
authors: Avi-Itzhak
authors: Department of Occupational Therapy, York College, City University of New York, Jamaica, NY, USA.
authors: Andrea
authors: A
authors: Krauss
mesh_terms: D002568:Certification; D002983:Clinical Competence; D004500:Education, Graduate; D004521:Educational Measurement; D006801:Humans; D009788:Occupational Therapy / Q000193:education* / Q000592:standards; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013334:Students
keywords: Outcome assessment; clinical competence; entry-level skills