Communication skills are an important professional competence for physicians. One method to evaluate the communicative competence of the student is to conduct objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) involving standardized patients (volunteers). 

The technique of using standardized patients is effective in practical training and at the stage of assessing students. This approach is a method of active learning and efficiently develop practical skills in students, while in the case of individual assignments it formes ability to work independently, in the case of collective (group) tasks - developing teamwork skills.

The learning pyramid (according to the National Training Laboratories, Bethel, Maine, 1969) and place of OSCE

Analysis of the questionnaires showed that 4% of the students said about unfriendly volunteers, 27% - wrote that it was difficult to take medical history, 2% - unfortunately, have never faced such situation, 12% - said about improvement of the volunteers communication skills. Only 10% of examinees decided that OSCE doesn’t develop their communication skills, 24% said some stations that have caused them some difficulties. However, the students themselves admitted their poor communication skills.

Use of OSCE gives possibility to achieve an objective, unbiased assessment of the knowledge and skills of students, to evaluate teaching and quality of curriculum.