Assessment of Communication, Professionalism, and Surgical Skills in an Objective Structured Performance-related Examination (OSPRE): a Psychometric Study

Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate the reliability and validity of a performance assessment of communication, professionalism, and surgical skills competencies for surgery residents.

Methods: Fourteen residents from the general surgery program of the University of Calgary were assessed in 7 surgical simulation stations that included communication and professionalism skills.

Results: The internal consistency reliability of the checklists and global rating scales combined was adequate for communication (α = .75-.92) and surgical skills (α = .86-.96), but not for professionalism (α = 0). There was evidence of validity as surgical skills performance improved as a function of postgraduate year level but not for the professionalism checklist. Surgical skills and communication correlated in the 2 stations assessed (r = .55 and .57; P < .05).

Conclusions: There is evidence for both reliability and validity for simultaneously assessing surgical skills and communication skills. Further instrument development is required to assess professionalism in a structured examination context.