Factors affecting the reliability of an objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) test in neurology.

Inconsistencies in individual student scores from one year to the next prompted attempts to produce a more accurate objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) test in neurology. A study of factors affecting the reliability of this test revealed that in spite of efforts to control patient and examiner variability, residual inaccuracies due to these effects remained. Also, the use of a uniform test structure may have led to student cueing. Student performance did not appear to be affected by the OSCE format per se. Innovations that might improve test reliability in subsequent OSCEs were identified.