Practice Exams

• Practice Exam (Requires Learn@UW Log In)
• Practice OSCE Scenarios

PCC Final Exam

There are four components to the final exam:

• OSCE exam: 25% of final grade
• Community Project Presentation: 5% of final grade
• On-line Closed Resource multiple choice exam: 5% of final grade
• Open Resource short answer/essay exam: 5% of final grade

1. OSCE - Last Thursday AM of the Rotation, (see email from Claire Ann Boyce) (25% of final grade)
   Students will be divided into four groups. Two groups will start with the OSCE and the other two groups will start with the Community Project presentations. Group assignments and room numbers will be sent via email. The OSCE is a clinical or practical examination. Each station tests performance of a set of clinical skills from the clerkship objectives. Students are provided with a brief case scenario and specific tasks to complete. The student then interacts with a standardized patient trained to provide a similar experience for each student. In most stations an assessor is present and uses a checklist of competencies to evaluate the student's performance. The PCC OSCE consists of 6 stations, each lasting 10-12 minutes and, because the OSCE is used for evaluation, students will receive minimal feedback on their performance in the station itself. Examples of skills that might be tested are: delivery of a problem assessment, negotiating a treatment plan, performing a focused physical exam, taking the history of a common primary care problem. Here are helpful hints for preparing for the OSCE exam.
2. Community Project Presentation (5% of final grade)
   Students will present their community project presentations to a faculty assessor and group of peers. Presentation requirements, including what to bring to theexam, can be found on Page 11 of the Community Project handbook
3. Proctored, Closed Resource Exam (one hour): Last Thursday, 12:00-1:00, HSLC Room 2121 (5% of final grade)
   Immediately after the OSCE and Community Project Presentation, students will take a short closed resource, aka 'shelf' exam. This exam consists of approximately 30 multiple choice questions designed to evaluate the knowledge and problem-solving skills students that are expected to learn on the clerkship. It is timed, but not designed to be time-constrained.
4. On-line (Learn@UW), "Open Book" Exam [1.5 hours] (5% of final grade)
   The on-line exam is available from 11 am on the last Thursday through 6 pm the last Friday of the Clerkship. The exam is open-reference to allow students to use references with which they are familiar; but has time constraints so that students will benefit from being facile with using on-line resources or creating their own. Students cannot use other people for help.

The format is a Modified-Essay Quiz (MEQ), a series of short-answer questions based on a clinical case. Students are given a portion of case information and are asked about the next step in managing the case. Some of the questions require the use of evidence-based medicine concepts.

Evaluation and Grading

You will be responsible for demonstrating competency in the core learning objectives on the final exam whether they are taught via Problem-Based Learning (PBL), in the clinical setting or independent study.

Near the end of the rotation, your primary clinical preceptors and other preceptors who have worked with you more than three half-days will be required to evaluate your clinical performance using a standardized clinical evaluation form. If you work with many preceptors at a clinic, the primary preceptor will often summarize the evaluation ratings for the clinic.

Those grading you will receive an evaluation form and an accompanying grid for guidance.

Typically, preceptors grade students as "Competent" or "Needs Improvement" unless the student has exemplary performance. If a preceptor's verbal feedback has been "You are doing great!!" it does not necessarily meant the preceptor will check boxes under "Advanced". It is the student's responsibility to elicit comprehensive feedback.

Each clinical preceptor who has worked with the student more than three half-days will evaluate the student's clinical performance, using the clinical evaluation form supplied by the Medical School's office. The small group leader will evaluate the student's performance in the Problem Based Learning sessions using the mentor evaluation form.

Each preceptor evaluation is weighted, based on the number of half-days with the student. In other words, the evaluation from a preceptor who worked with a student for 21 half days will count more than an evaluation from a preceptor who worked with a student for 6 half days. The final grade is determined by the Clerkship Director.

Because PCC final grades are determined by a number of carefully selected components, it is rare that a final grade is changed. If you have concerns about your grade, contact Claire Ann Boyce. If you wish to review the specific results of your OSCE or online exam, contact Doug Smith, MD. Only if you are able to provide new or revised information about your performance will a grade change be considered. These requests should be submitted in writing and with appropriate documentation to the PCC Director, John Brill, MD

Final Grade:
50% Clinical (average of all preceptors)
10% Problem Based Learning and Dr/Pt Communication sessions
40% Final Exam (25% OSCE, 5% closed resource Multiple Choice, 5% Community Project Community Project Presentation, 5% open resource Modified Essay)