Object Structural Clinical Exam (OSCE) software

Bristol Medical School has a requirement to procure software for running Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs) for its undergraduate MB ChB programme. This software must include a platform for:

1. secure storage and tracking of all documents and data relating to the OSCEs,
2. electronic marking of the OSCE using tablets/iPads, and
3. prompt and accurate analysis of the results.

Bristol Medical School operates two large scale Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs) every year: one at the end of year 3 of the MB ChB Programme (June) and one at the end of year 4 (July).

The General Medical Council (GMC), which accredits all medical schools in the UK, is introducing a national Medical Licensing Assessment (MLA) for all new medical graduates. The MLA will consist of 2 components: a written exam and a clinical exam (known as a Clinical and Professional Skills Assessment). The written exam will be set and run at a national level by the Medical Schools Council Assessment Alliance. Individual medical schools are being given responsibility for creating and delivering the clinical exam (CPSA) but must do so in accordance with a set of 20 standards specified by the GMC. Our OSCE at the end of year 4 of the MB ChB programme will become our Clinical and Professional Skills assessment in July 2024. The process of accrediting our year 4 OSCE as the CPSA will begin in February 2022.

Many of the GMC's standards relate to security and the elimination of errors in marking and analysis. Hitherto we have used a paper-based system for our OSCEs and scan our mark-sheets; this system carries a risk of error. Every year we have to check several marksheets by hand because they have not been completed or scanned correctly. Using an electronic marking system in which examiners record their marks on a tablet/iPad would eliminate this risk; examiners would not be able to move onto the next candidate before completing the first marksheet.

Once the marking has been done the scores have to be analysed in detail to 1) calculate the pass mark for each station, 2) estimate the reliability of the whole exam and each constituent station and 3) check for any variability in marking according to the venue, student cohort or examiner. We hope that an electronic OSCE marking system will facilitate this analysis.

Another of the GMC's standards relates to tracking the lifecycle of each station - when it was written, used and revised and what how it each cohort of students performed in it. We hope that an OSCE software system will give us the ability to do this.

If this project is successful, the University of Bristol might be interested in extending the use of the software to the veterinary and dental schools and for multi-mini-interviews.

Contract will be for 2 years initially, with 2 x 1 year option periods.

Additional information:

All tender documentation is available on our tender portal - please register at the below link and see Opportunities page