Pharmacy Students Leverage AI-Powered OSCEs to Enhance Mental Health Counselling Skills

This past Tuesday and Wednesday, November 24-25, a pioneering Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) was conducted at the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences. Over the course of two days, approximately 60 fourth-year undergraduate pharmacy students participated in an inventive assessment designed to integrate artificial intelligence into their communication skill training. The focus of this OSCE was to help students develop effective counseling skills for patients dealing with mental health challenges, such as anxiety and depression. The students used the Gemini AI platform to interact with realistic case scenarios, which were carefully crafted to simulate patient encounters. Each scenario provided prompts that guided the students through the process of applying motivational interviewing techniques and empathetic communication strategies.

To ensure a high-quality assessment environment, students from the MSc in Clinical Pharmacy program acted as both simulated patients and assessors during the OSCE. They facilitated its flow and contributed to grading and feedback. This collaborative effort between undergraduate and graduate students showcased the College’s commitment to enhancing student confidence and leadership.

Overall, the event was a definite success, providing the participants with invaluable hands-on experience in a controlled, AI-patient simulated setting.