Report on the Reworked OSCE Process

Date: 4th June 2026
Instructor: Dr. Blaze Asheetha Maria Rosario
Participants: Faculty of St. Philomena’s College of Nursing
Format: 7-station OSCE circuit – 6 assessed stations and 1 rest station, 5 minutes per station

The Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) assesses the clinical competence of students in a standardised and objective manner: each candidate performs a defined clinical task at every station within a fixed time and is assessed by an examiner using a structured tool. To strengthen the way the OSCE is conducted for B.Sc. Nursing students, the process was reworked. On 4th June 2026, Dr. Blaze Asheetha Maria Rosario instructed and oriented the faculty on the revised process, their individual responsibilities and the timeline for preparation.

Under the reworked process, the OSCE is organised as a single closed circuit of seven stations: five procedure stations, one communication station and one non-assessed rest station. One station was allotted to each nursing specialty, with a teacher in charge responsible for it. The assessed stations together carry 75 marks, as shown below.

Dr. Blaze instructed each teacher in charge to plan her own station and to prepare four components for it: the candidate instructions, the examiner’s instructions, the list of resources required, and the assessment tool. All six assessed stations are manned, with an examiner present at each. For the Mental Health Nursing station on therapeutic communication with an anxious patient, a first year GNM student is to be prepared to act as the standardised patient. The rest station, entrusted to Ms Kavana, is placed in the middle of the circuit so that candidates can relax and prepare for the next station; it is planned creatively and is not scored.

Ms Suhana was assigned the overall placement of the stations, together with the layout of the circuit, the bell and the logistics of the examination. The stations are arranged in a closed circuit with clear numbering, a separate entry door beside Station 7 and a separate exit door beside Station 5. Dr. Blaze oriented the faculty to the general principles of the reworked process: one candidate at each station; 5 minutes per station, with the bell rung when the time is over; movement in a single direction, without candidates crossing one another; silence at all stations; and adherence to the institution’s OSCE rules. Each candidate therefore completes the full circuit in 35 minutes.

A clear timeline was set for preparation. The teachers were asked to prepare the complete outline of their stations by the following evening and to obtain approval online. Once approved, they were to begin arranging the required equipment and materials and setting up their stations from the day after.

The reworked process gives every station the same structure and documentation, a fixed time and a clear flow of candidates through the circuit, so that every student is examined under identical conditions. Instructing and orienting the faculty in advance ensured that each teacher knows her role, that stations are prepared and approved on time, and that the OSCE is conducted in a well-organised, fair and objective manner.