title: Boosting clinical performance: The impact of enhanced final year placements.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  This study follows on from a study that investigated how to develop effective final year medical student assistantship placements, using multidisciplinary clinical teams in planning and delivery.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This study assessed the effects on objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) performance of the in-course enhanced "super-assistantship" placement introduced to a randomly selected sample of 2013-14 final year medical students at Leeds medical school.
  
  
  METHODS
  Quantitative data analysis was used to compare the global grades of OSCE stations between students who undertook this placement against those who did not.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was a small overall improvement in the "super-assistantship" student scores across the whole assessment (effect size = 0.085). "Pre-op Capacity", "Admissions Prescribing" and "Hip Pain" stations had small-medium effect sizes (0.226, 0.215, and 0.214) in favor of the intervention group. Other stations had small effect sizes (0.107-0.191), mostly in favor of the intervention group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The "super-assistantship" experience characterized by increasing student responsibility on placement can help to improve competence and confidence in clinical decision-making "in a simulated environment". The clinical environment and multidisciplinary team must be ready and supported to provide these opportunities effectively. Further in-course opportunities for increasing final year student responsibility should be developed.
authors.affiliation: a Leeds Institute of Medical Education, University of Leeds , Leeds , UK.
authors.forename: D V H
authors.initials: DV
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.affiliation: a Leeds Institute of Medical Education, University of Leeds , Leeds , UK.
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Reid
authors.affiliation: a Leeds Institute of Medical Education, University of Leeds , Leeds , UK.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Homer
mesh_terms: D002983:Clinical Competence; D000066491:Clinical Decision-Making; D004521:Educational Measurement / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D010146:Pain; D010808:Physical Examination; D013337:Students, Medical