A clinical skills assessment is a hands-on exam that evaluates a person’s clinical abilities. These tests are sometimes given to health-care workers like laboratory and patient technicians or nurses, but they are most commonly given to students in these fields as part of their pre-graduation testing. These tests are frequently required in order to obtain a license.
Clinical skills are those that are specifically related to the medical aspects of patient care. They are distinct from other common health-care skills such as clerical abilities or medical terminology knowledge. To ensure safe patient care, it is critical to test an individual’s ability to perform clinical tasks.
The types of skills that are tested are determined by the type of education that a student is pursuing. A clinical skills evaluation could include tests of the student’s ability to draw blood, take blood pressure or other vital signs, administer injections, dress wounds, and a variety of other tasks. A student electrocardiography (EKG) technician may be required to demonstrate her ability to perform an EKG correctly. A patient technician’s ability to measure and record data such as temperature, blood pressure, and urine output may be required. In most cases, a nursing student will be expected to demonstrate a wide range of clinical abilities.
A clinical skills assessment is almost always a practical exam. This implies that the student performs clinical tasks on a mannequin or a live person. While these tests are frequently given in addition to or in conjunction with a written exam, they are usually scored separately and may be given at different times.
A clinical skills assessment is required in most formal clinical health care classes. Typically, these tests focus solely on the skills learned in that particular class. However, it is not uncommon for schools to require a comprehensive clinical skills assessment before graduation.
Clinical health-care positions are frequently regulated by a government agency or other governing body. This usually means that the position necessitates the acquisition of a license, certification, or registration. Individuals must often pass both a written test and a comprehensive clinical skills examination in order to earn a license or certification in this situation. Clinical assessments taken during training can sometimes be used to fulfill this requirement if the individual attended an approved formal course. Clinicians may be required to retake clinical exams on a regular basis in order to keep their certifications or licenses current.