A Study to Test a New Pelvic Examinatio… | Clinical Trial

Key information

Conditions

Female Pelvic Examination

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Observational

Primary location

Birmingham Womens Hospital

Birmingham, West Midlands, B15 2TG, United Kingdom

About this study

Physical examination of the pelvis is an important core skill that medical students need to acquire. However, due to its intimate nature some students are graduating unable to perform competent pelvic examinations. At present, evaluation of the medical students competence at pelvic examination is done by subjective faculty assessment. This assessment is typically performed at the end of the teaching block and is based on the assessors' recollection of the students' performance. This kind of assessment has been shown to have poor validity and reliability. This is in contrast to objective structured assessments of technical skill (OSATS), which use task specific and global rating scales and have been used to evaluate a wide range of clinical and surgical skills. However, no studies to date have evaluated an assessment tool for pelvic examination. In this study the investigators aim to determine the validity and reliability of an OSATS for pelvic examination. In addition, the investigators aim to identify factors that influence the scores in OSATS.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

Final year medical students starting their Obstetrics and Gynaecology placement
Final year medical students finishing their Obstetrics and Gynaecology placement
Pre Royal College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology registered junior doctors doing a Obstetrics and Gynaecology placement.
Signed Consent Form

Exclusion criteria

None

Treatment and study plan

Observed Structured Assessment Tool in Pelvic Examination

Procedure

Participants will be asked to perform a pelvic examination including a speculum and bimanual examination on a pelvic model. They will be asked to approach the pelvic model as if it were a real patient.

Primary outcomes

Validity of assessment tool

Time frame: Day 1

Both validity and reliability are of equal importance so there will be two primary outcomes. Validity will be tested using the proxy measure of construct validity. This will be demonstrated if the results of the OSATS reflect the participant experience.
Reliability of assessment tool

Time frame: Day 1

Reliability will be measured using inter-rater reliability between 3 assessors who will be blinded to the other assessors' marks.

Secondary outcomes

Factors other than the stage in training that may influence proficiency in pelvic examination

Time frame: Day 1

We aim to identify other factors that may influence the participants' score in OSATS in pelvic examination. We will identify potential areas in a questionnaire administered to participant's prior the examination. This information will be collated before the examination in a participant information form. Information regarding gender, age, ethnicity, confidence in examination, interest in future career in obstetrics and gynaecology will be collected as secondary outcome measures.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Birmingham Women's NHS Foundation Trust

Other Gov

Registry information

Official study title

A Study to Test the Validity and Reliability of an Objective Structured Assessment of Technical Skills in Pelvic Examination

Acronym: PEAT

Important dates

Study start: 2013
Primary completion: 2013
Study completion: 2013
First posted: Nov 14, 2012
Registry last updated: Apr 3, 2014

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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