Mitigating the Challenges of Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) in Nursing Education: A Phenomenological Research Study

Background: Objective evaluation of clinical competencies is a key component of undergraduate nursing education programs. Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE), widely used in nursing education internationally has limited utilization in undergraduate nursing programs in the United States. The efficacy of OSCE as a valuable method of objective evaluation of students' clinical competencies is not so much the problem for the nursing faculty; overcoming the impediments of its implementation is a much greater challenge. Objective: To explore the strategies for mitigating the challenges of OSCE in baccalaureate nursing education program. Design/Participants/Setting: In this descriptive phenomenological research study, 10 undergraduate nursing faculty participated in semi-structured interviews at a public university in the North-Eastern region of United States. Method Observations and semi-structured interviews were conducted. All interviews were recorded and transcribed. Colaizzi seven steps analysis framework was used to identify major themes in the collected data. The clear, detailed, and sequential procedural processes in both data collection and analysis ensured rigorous and trustworthy results. Results: Five mitigating OSCE strategies utilized by the faculty included: administrative and technical supports, use of clinical instructors during evaluation, faculty OSCE education, limitation of validation to the required skills essential for professional practice, and collaboration among all course faculty members. Conclusion: Utilization of OSCE as an objective evaluation method is feasible in United States undergraduate nursing education programs if creative strategies are determined to mitigate its challenges.