Assessment of clinical competence of medical students by using standardized patients with musculoskeletal problems

Objective. To assess medical students' clinical competence in addressing musculoskeletal problems. Methods. Nineteen junior medical students completed 2 standardized patient‐based tests structured to capture their clinical decisions from undiagnosed chief complaint to management. Results. No student approached the highest possible score on either test, and the students as a group received less than half the possible points on 5 important aspects of diagnostic reasoning. Conclusion. Standardized patient‐based tests can be structured to provide enlightening information about medical students' clinical competence with regard to musculoskeletal problems.