Introduction: The Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) has been widely
used in health professions education since the 1970s. The global disruption caused
by the COVID-19 pandemic restricted in-person assessments and medical educators
globally sought alternative means to assess and certify students and trainees to meet
the acute demand for health-care workers. One such solution was through virtual
OSCE (vOSCE), which modified traditional in-person OSCE using videoconference
platforms. This meta-ethnography sought to synthesise qualitative literature on candidates' and assessors' experiences of vOSCE to evaluate whether it may have a role
in future assessment practices.
Methods: In June 2022, we systematically searched PsycINFO, Medline and ERIC for
peer-reviewed qualitative and mixed-methods articles that described candidates' and
assessors' experiences of virtual OSCE in health professions education. Of 1069 articles identified, 17 were synthesised using meta-ethnography.
Results: The final synthesis represented 1190 candidates and assessors from faculties of medicine, dentistry, nursing, pharmacy and osteopathy. We developed our
findings into four key concepts. ‘Strengthening confidence in a virtual environment’
highlighted attempts to overcome and mitigate concerns associated with transitioning from in-person to virtual assessment. ‘Understanding the scope of use as an
assessment’ reflected on the suitability of vOSCE in assessing various skills. ‘Refining
operational processes’ emphasised the technical challenges of implementing vOSCE
and impacts on accessibility and resources. ‘Envisioning its future role’ considered
the applicability of vOSCE in the climate of rapid development in telehealth.
Conclusion: This meta-ethnography highlighted that although vOSCE was primarily
considered a temporary and crisis response, candidates and assessors recognised
positive, as well as negative, consequences of the transition towards them. Moving
forward, medical education policymakers should carefully consider the extent to
which elements of vOSCE could be incorporated into assessment systems, particularly in light of the rise of telehealth in clinical practice
