Abstract

Software for managing activities in a Clinical Skills Center (CSC) is indispensable. Several software solutions are available but they are expensive and do not support Spanish. In 2014 six thousand students have participated in OSCEs in our CSC without specific informatics support. A decision was made to develop a web based solution for our CSC. Objectives: To evaluate a locally developed web-based software as a management tool for a standardized patient (SP) based communications skills assessment. Methods: Software was developed with a local IT Company leaded by a team of our CSC during a four month period in which its requirements were defined. A pilot program in a Pediatrics communication skills assessment was developed to evaluate its functionality. Students, cases, dates, checklists for history taking, counseling and Master Interviewing Rater Scale (MIRS) were entered in the software by an administrator. Three SPs, 7 faculty members and 18 students participated. SPs represented 3 cases for 18 students. Faculty members and SPs entered the information about the performance of students using the software checklists and the MIRS form after each encounter.