Clinical Research Directory

Emergency Structured Clinical Examination Training bOX

This study assessed whether a training toolbox called ECOX could help medical students prepare for their objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) during an emergency medicine clerkship. The hypothesis was that adding ECOX to usual training would improve examination performance and reduce examination-related anxiety. Eight 10-week clerkship rotations at Angers University Hospital, France, were randomly assigned to usual training alone or usual training plus ECOX, with four rotations in each group. All students in a rotation received the same assignment. ECOX provided a timer and reference assessment grids for practising seven-minute encounters with real patients who agreed to participate. Students could use the toolbox throughout their clerkship. Both groups completed the same three-station examination at the end of the clerkship. Examiners were unaware of group allocation. Anxiety was assessed at the beginning of the clerkship and immediately before the final examination.