Usefulness of the script concordance test in dermatology.

BACKGROUND The script concordance test (SCT) measures clinical data interpretation in the context of uncertainty. To our knowledge, its feasibility has not yet been demonstrated in dermatology. OBJECTIVES This study describes the feasibility, reliability and validity of the SCT for use in dermatology teaching to family medicine residents. METHODS We designed an SCT for dermatology teaching, adapted to the level of family medicine students. The family medicine residents attending a dermatology lecture course and a reference panel of dermatologists underwent the test. Software available on the SCT-dedicated website was used to determine the scores. The Cronbach's α was calculated. The scores were described by means, standard deviation, and minimum and maximum scores. Mann-Whitney tests were used to compare resident and reference panel scores. RESULTS The test contained 33 vignettes of four questions each. Cronbach's α was 0.80. Mean scores were 75.6 for the reference panel and 65.0 for the residents (P = 0.0009). CONCLUSIONS This study confirmed the SCT's capacity to distinguish groups on the basis of experience. This study demonstrated the feasibility and reliability of the SCT in the field of dermatology.