Ethnicity needs to be considered when planning clinical exams

Subtle differences may contribute to students from ethnic minorities performing less well than white students in medical school examinations. Wass and colleagues (p 800) conducted a discourse analysis of 179 students' communication style in a final year, objectively structured, clinical examination. They found that the mean performance of ethnic minority students was lower than that of white students. Possible reasons include poor communication skills of a small group of male students, and examiners' reliance on a narrow textbook definition of patient centredness. Tests need to address issues of diversity to ensure that ethnic minorities are not disadvantaged.

(Credit: PHILIPPE PSAILA/SPL)

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Relevant Article

Effect of ethnicity on performance in a final objective structured clinical examination: qualitative and quantitative study

Val Wass, Celia Roberts, Ron Hoogenboom, Roger Jones, and Cees Van der Vleuten
BMJ 2003 326: 800-803. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

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