Implementing Digital OSCEs at Leicester Medical School

Digital OSCE implementation at Leicester Medical School – Support, collaboration and flexibility.

For more than 50 years, Leicester Medical School has been committed to delivering high-quality medical education. In 2016, they opened the George Davies Centre, a purpose-built facility designed to support technology-enhanced learning and equip students with the skills needed for 21st-century medical practice. As part of their continued drive for innovation, they partnered with Speedwell to implement digital OSCEs in their Medical School.

Re-Thinking OSCE Processes

With a focus on innovation, it was essential to ensure that student assessment practices kept pace. Jessica Weston, from the Assessment team at the Medical School, explains that they were keen to explore how technology could be harnessed to enhance efficiency and drive improvements to their assessment processes.

With written assessments already being delivered electronically, their attention shifted to the OSCEs. It wasn’t the first time the team had explored options for a digital OSCE solution. Several years earlier, they’d investigated available solutions but, at the time, didn’t find any that met their needs. The OSCEs remained paper-based, using Speedwell’s OMR system.

Jessica explained that when they received a recommendation from the GMC to consider technology-based exam solutions to align with other universities, the team saw this as an opportunity to revisit their approach.  The manual processes associated with paper-based OSCEs were time-consuming and increasingly out of step with a forward-looking, technology-focused Medical School. The OSCEs needed to evolve, and it was clear that there were advantages to be gained.

From Trial to Trust: Choosing the eSystem

It was important to find a solution that could confidently handle OSCEs on a large scale – the Medical School has four main sets of OSCEs each of which is delivered over a week for years two to five of the medical degree program, with a formative version being used for year one. Each year has around 300 students, so around 1500 students are assessed in total.

To instil confidence, Speedwell offered Jessica a free trial site, which she was keen to utilise. She was set up with a dedicated version of the eSystem, providing her with full access to all its features. This free service is extended to all potential customers, providing the opportunity to completely experience the software and conduct pilot exams if required before committing to purchase.

This set Speedwell apart. Jessica explains how the trial site allowed her to thoroughly explore the software, create practice exams, and examine all the features in detail:

“Being able to trial the software before committing was invaluable. It allowed us to explore it in-depth and gave us complete confidence in its suitability”

Ultimately, it confirmed that the eSystem could deliver everything they were looking for. This, coupled with an already excellent relationship, meant that Jessica was happy to recommend the eSystem in her report to the leadership team.

She evaluated and included several other solutions, but none offered the comprehensive features and flexibility that Speedwell provided. Her recommendation was well-received, and the decision was made to move forward with the eSystem platform.

A Smooth Transition

The shift to using the eSystem was a smooth one. Jessica reports that she found it very easy and intuitive to use.

“From when I first used it, it was very clear how you build an exam”

This, together with the comprehensive training on offer, has meant they were quickly able to get up and running with the software.

As it’s been rolled out to more exams and the wider team is using it, she says they are also finding it easy. She has completed a few internal training sessions, but no one is struggling, and everyone has been able to quickly grasp the software.

The transition for examiners was seamless too; the assessment team was very detailed with their briefings, and the change was accepted without any resistance or problems.

In 2023-24, Jessica detailed that they successfully delivered their OSCE programme using the eSystem’s offline app. The decision to run them offline was made because of some nervousness around internet drop-outs. However, having used the software and seen the safeguards, they were confident to move to online OSCE delivery. They successfully completed the transition for the 2024-25 academic year.

Furthermore, Speedwell has recently added a feature that allows dynamic switching between online and offline in instances of brief internet outages, without interruption to the exam. This and the added flexibility for last-minute changes were the main reasons for the team to switch to the online format.

After the success of the OSCEs, the assessment team expanded its use of the eSystem. It is now used for exams that are run in the Medical School’s dissection rooms – an additional 22 exams. Jessica explains that these specialist exams are not technically OSCEs; they’re a hybrid between OSCEs and written exams. However, the eSystem had the flexibility to be able to accommodate this type of exam, too.

After a seamless integration, the team are reaping the benefits of the software.

Transform Results. Elevate Feedback

One of the areas where the eSystem has made the biggest impact is the time it takes to process results. The team have seen huge time savings, enabling results to be delivered to students much faster.

 “With the eSystem, we’ve seen significant gains in the time it takes to process results. What used to take several days now takes just minutes.”

Instead of manually collecting, collating, scanning paper mark sheets and running reports, as was the process with paper-based OSCEs, the eSystem automates the entire process, and the results and reports are ready to download immediately after the exam ends. A huge improvement on the days it would have taken previously.

Cutting the time spent on these tasks was one of the key drivers for switching to digital OSCEs, and this has been hugely beneficial for the team. Less time on manual processes means they have more time to focus on strategic improvements to the assessments. But the benefits don’t end there. The quality of feedback they are now able to provide to students has been elevated.

When the team first saw the feedback reports available, they were very impressed. The tables and graphs offered clarity and depth of insight that were especially well received.

 “Everyone loves the graphs, they provide excellent visual insights and the students highly appreciate them”

Delivering this level of detailed feedback to students is incredibly helpful. Now, it’s easy to visually demonstrate not only how they’ve performed on each station, but also how they’ve performed against their cohort. Furthermore, students can quickly see if there are any knowledge gaps or areas where they may need extra support.

Previously, gaining access to this level of detail would have meant a lot of manual collation. The time and resources to do this made it unattainable. With the eSystem, it’s simply a case of clicking a button to download it, and it’s done.

It’s been game-changing, streamlining processes has allowed the team to focus more on the students rather than the administration.

The Speedwell Advantage

As an existing Speedwell customer, the team had already established a strong working relationship. While the eSystem’s functionality and the time savings it could deliver were undoubtedly important, the exceptional support provided, including swift responses to any queries, was equally valuable to the team.

“Speedwell’s support is excellent – incredibly responsive – often getting back to us within minutes. Having technical support readily available was reassuring, especially as we transitioned to the eSystem”

Getting this level of accessibility and responsiveness from other software providers is often a challenge, making Speedwell unique.

Giving a real-life example, Jessica says: “When we encountered a challenge with setting up an exam how we wanted, Speedwell didn’t just fix it—they showed me what was wrong and how to resolve it. That kind of personalised support is rare and very helpful when navigating a new system.”

Establishing a relationship of trust has led to other advantages. When Jessica identified additional functionality they could benefit from, she felt comfortable sharing this with the Speedwell team. Speedwell’s collaborative approach with customers means that all feedback is considered and, where feasible, integrated into the software.

 “Speedwell actively listen to our feedback and has implemented several features we’ve suggested.”​

One such example is that the team required critical error questions in some exams, but this feature wasn’t initially available. When the team provided this feedback to Speedwell, it was added to a future release, ensuring that the eSystem better met their needs.

Another feature they would like to see is having the option to make examiner feedback mandatory. Again, Speedwell has worked on a solution which will be available in the next software update.

This relationship of open communication and collaboration fosters a situation where the software can evolve and continue to meet the needs of the Medical School’s OSCE exams in the future.

A Software that Delivers

Reflecting on the experience, Jessica says the Medical School has been delighted with what the eSystem has delivered. By embracing the change, they have not only streamlined assessment processes but also enhanced the quality of feedback provided to students.

Looking ahead, there are other features they would like to utilise, for example, the in-system candidate feedback feature, so that the reports are sent to students directly from the software, further automating the process. Plus, Jessica hopes to see the eSystem’s use extended to other exam types, although that would be subject to internal review and approval by the leadership team.

In summary, the digital OSCE implementation at the Medical School, using Speedwell’s eSystem has resulted in significant time savings and improvement. This partnership demonstrates how embracing exam technology, coupled with a collaborative approach, can lead to substantial improvements in assessment processes.

Get in Touch

If you would like to find out how we can help you streamline and improve your assessment processes. Contact us: Call our sales team at +44 (0) 1223 851703 or email info@speedwellsoftware.com