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The Top 10 OSCE Tips

The New Year is commonly seen as the ideal time for 3rd year students to start thinking about OSCEs. Here is a helpful head start.

98% of marks are for things unrelated to medicine so focus mainly on introducing yourself. Name, star sign,
favourite checkout, place of birth
and hobbies should all be included.

Remember, its just like a Muslim Medics

mock OSCE - there are over 9000 marks
per station and if you dont manage to get
every one of them, you fail the entire OSCE
and drop out of medical school. Dont forget - you must perform any surgical procedures or radiological investigations that
you mention. 10 minutes is plenty of time.

14 ICSM Gazette

As Imperial will tell you OSCEs are as

just like real medicine. Show that you
understand this. In real clinic would you
put a cannula in a plastic arm? Of course
not. So dont do it here. Use the real
one! Dont forget this maxim in the suturing or catheterisation stations either!

Infection control is key! Make sure

you wash your hands constantly. In the
minute between stations for a distinction why not have a shower or even
a quick bath to show how concerned
you are about this important topic?

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READY TO DO THE NEURO

EXAM!

If you see another medical student as the

patient they wont have signs. Unless its
Dave Smith then he will have all the cllinical features of premature menopause.

Empathy is key! To show that you know

this why not give yourself the patient
experience in the exam. Listen to your own
chest as well as the patient. Inspect your
own fingernails as well as theirs! And in
the catheterisation station theres a reason
why they give you two catheters.

Not feeling confident about a station? Simple. Give somebody

elses candidate number and relax.

Undressing is a tricky topic. To put the

patient at ease and score maximum empathy marks why not remove your own
shirt also? Nipples to knees will be ideal
for female grad students as the distance
between them is now insignificant. If
youre only going for a pass then wearing a low cut top should be sufficient.

Be prepared for comically bad acting. The

quality of acting on display by the hired actors at OSCEs makes High School Musical
look like Casablanca. Luckily Light Opera Club
host a week long bad acting exposure course
to help you prepare, usually in the first week
of December. Tickets available on the door.

Precautions for the afternoon session.

Avoid making any rapid movements or
loud noises. You might wake the examiner!

by Oliver Gale-Grant, Shell Gatter, Tom Phillips and Helena Lee

ICSM Gazette 15