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Luis Gómez Miranda , Tomás Reyes Amigo , Hernán Andrés de la Barra Ortiz^*✉

1. Programa de Doctorado en Políticas y Gestión Educativa, Facultad de Ciencias de la Educación, Universidad de Playa Ancha, C.P. 2360072, Av. Playa Ancha 850, Playa Ancha, Valparaíso, Chile. 

2. Exercise and Rehabilitation Sciences Institute, School of Physical Therapy, Faculty of Rehabilitation Sciences, Universidad Andres Bello, Santiago de Chile 7591538, Chile.
3. Physical Activity Sciences Observatory (OCAF), Department of Physical Activity Sciences, Universidad de Playa Ancha, Valparaiso, Chile.

4. Physiotherapeutic Resources Research Laboratory, Department of Physical Therapy, Federal University of São Carlos (UFSCar), São Paulo, Brazil.

Abstract

The validation of evaluation instruments such as the Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) in healthcare education is crucial for precise clinical skills assessments, which are requisites for professional practice. This study aims to validate an OSCE designed specifically for physical therapy students enrolled in the electrophysical agents course. A non-experimental cross-sectional study included 167 fourth-year students (86 men,79 women, average age 21 years ±1.3) at Andres Bello University. The OSCE, comprising five stations (S1-S5) assessing electrophysical agent applications, constituted 30% of the course grade. Stations evaluated generic skills, clinical reasoning, and practical abilities with checklists. Statistical Analysis KR-20 for internal consistency and exploratory factor analysis for construct validity, with the removal of criteria with low correlations and high eigenvalues to refine the instrument.

Descriptive statistics indicated a non-normal score distribution (p<0.01) across stations. Notably, stations S1 (connective tissue flexibility) and S5 (equipment installation) exhibited notable performance. The KR-20 statistic showed that most stations had high (S2-S4) or very high (S1, S2) reliability. Analysis by domain revealed low internal consistency (<0.4) for generic and practical skills, specifically for S3 (drainage), S4 (strengthening), and S5 (equipment installation). Factor analysis identified underlying latent variables, particularly in S2, S3, and S4. Refinement led to the removal of 6,7, and 3 criteria from S1, S2-S4, and S5, respectively, resulting in improved reliability and construct validity in the instrument. The enhancements in validity and internal consistency, justifying the removal of the generic domain‎.

Keywords: Objective structured clinical examination (OSCE), Physical therapy, Education, Professional, Clinical competence, Validation studies as topic

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