Macauly Gatenby is a newly Registered Veterinary Nurse, and is currently a BVNA Student Council Member.

Here, Macauly describes what is involved in preparing for the OSCE assessment, reflects on his own experience, and gives advice for students who may be about to embark on this final step towards becoming an RVN.

“The objective structured clinical examination is better known amongst student veterinary nurses (SVNs) as the ‘dreaded’ OSCE. It tends to be the final obstacle for many before becoming a registered veterinary nurse (RVN), although for degree students they are sometimes completed throughout the course period as opposed to being the final requirement. This examination method is the main practical component for SVNs.

“Speaking from personal experience, it required me to attend an OSCE day where you visit 12 practical stations, each lasting 8 minutes, including 2 minutes of reading and preparation time. Each station requires you to display different fundamental ‘Day One Skills’ that you will need as an RVN. Prior to sitting my OSCE, I had the potential of around 49 OSCE assessments from several core components, meaning I would need to ensure I was able to complete all 49 of the potential stations required even though I would only sit 12.

“The pass rate for my OSCE was 8/12, again this varies amongst diploma and degree students. The OSCE requires you to demonstrate your competence in many areas that you have learnt throughout your course, from diagnostic principles to anaesthesia and theatre nursing skills; across 12 stations you are required to demonstrate a blended mix of all the components. For example, I could have had a station requiring me to demonstrate CPR, so this is a station I practised a lot but did not end up having. The stations are also sometimes updated and changed, so it is important to ensure you are up to date with the assessor guidelines.

“OSCE practice from my own experience started several months before whilst attending college days. We would spend time in the lab rotating around different skills, learning and understanding what is required from us, whilst also practising the skills within the designated time period of 6 minutes. You are also able to practise these skills at the veterinary practice you work at, but this can be scarce as the priority of practising this often becomes lower due to the needs of our patients, understandably! Because of this, it means many students, like myself, often spend a lot of our own time continuously practising these skills, honing them ready for the big day!

“Prior to practising for the OSCE, I think it is important for each individual to understand how they best study. Although OSCE is a practical element, I felt more comfortable in reading what is required and envisioning how to do it – compared to actually physically going over them many times. This method worked really well for me, but might not necessarily work for someone else. One way to understand how to revise, not only for OSCE but for all assessment components, could be to undertake the VARK questionnaire, which can be found in the BVNA Student Toolkit.

“I’ll be honest, for someone who has anxiety there were times I didn’t think I could sit the OSCE assessment and that it might have been easier to just quit, rather than face the final hurdle. However, everyone around you wants you to succeed, all the staff involved with the assessment want you to become the future of our profession. I communicated everything and anything that I thought could be relevant during each station with the assessor, and although hard, I tried my best to forget what had happened once I had left the station. For example, I had clearly messed up on my bandaging OSCE – but because I was able to verbally repeat several times what and why I would do something, I was able to pass that station. But I realised my mistake the second I stepped out of it, as you’re not allowed to re-enter once leaving.

“So – my main piece of advice would be what is done cannot be changed, try not to overthink and analyse as you have other stations that need your attention. It is important to also understand, if you fail the first time you have opportunities to understand, learn from the mistakes and retake. Also, these are intense exams – try to remember they are not a complete reflection of who you are in practice, because you’ve gotten this far and are an amazing SVN, soon to be RVN!”

Want to learn more about what it’s like to be an SVN?

Find out more about how you can get involved in #VNAM2023 here.