The future of education in the Health Professions depends on innovation. It is only through research that innovations can be developed and validated. Our center assists health educators in all facets of the research and development process.

Well-designed assessments are among the most effective learning tools employed in health science education (1). They are also an essential component in evaluating educational effectiveness.  While national organizations provide assessment support for admissions and licensure, the primary responsibility for designing and administering assessments in health science education continues to reside with the educational institution.  The recent cessation of the USMLE clinical performance exam demonstrates the practical limits of national testing and why robust in-house assessment will continue to be a key component of quality health professions education.  While studies suggest examinations are often poorly designed, they also show that with strategic collaboration, these tests can be dramatically improved (2, 3).

Thirty years of collaboration with medical educators demonstrates that assessment research is effective in improving education in the health professions.  Many of these collaborations are displayed in the portfolio section of the website. They provide insight to potential clients on how assessment research can improved educational quality.

References

1. Kreiter, C.D., Green, J., Lenoch, S., Saiki, T.  The overall impact of testing on medical student learning: quantitative estimation of consequential validity. Advances in Health Sciences Education, 2013, 18:835-844.

 2. Jozefowicz, R.F., Koeppen, B.M., Case, S., Galbraith, R., Swanson, D., Glew. The quality of in-house medical school examinations. Academic Medicine, 2002, 77(2).

 3. Nyangeni, T., van Rooyen, D., Du Plessis, A.H., ten Ham-Baloyi, W. Quality management of objective structured clinical examinations: An integrative literature review. Nurse Education Today, 2021, 109, 105223.