In person

Fully face-to-face modality in the classroom

Class attendance:

Attendance is compulsory for all students. A maximum of two unjustified absences may be accumulated throughout the course. From the third unjustified absence onward, each absence will result in a 0.5-point penalty on the continuous assessment grade. Repeat students may not miss any class. Any unjustified absence will entail a 0.5-point penalty per absence.

Each student must attend classes in the group assigned to them, and group changes will not be accepted. Lost classes cannot be made up. Only in the event of a justified cause must the student contact the instructor to report the situation and seek alternatives, but the class can never be made up. Only the following will be accepted as justified causes: the student’s hospital admission or the death of a first-degree relative.

Attendance rules:

• Students must wear a white coat or scrub top, keep their hair tied back, wear no watch or jewelry on hands and wrists, keep nails short, and wear comfortable shoes. Failure to comply may lead the instructor to expel the student from class, which will count as an unjustified absence.

• If a student arrives late (from 10:20 a.m. onwards), the instructor may decide not to allow entry, and it will count as an unjustified absence.

The course assessment consists of two parts:

1. Continuous assessment (40%):

• 5%: Pre-class exercises
• 10%: Post-class exercises (calculations + ECG)
• 10%: Submission of the patient’s progress charts
• 5%: Mid-term assessment – mini-OSCE, 1st semester
• 10%: Mid-term assessment – mini-OSCE, 2nd semester

2. Final exam (60%):

The final exam will be conducted as a general OSCE (with two parts: a theoretical part and a practical part, usually assessed on different days). Students must demonstrate acquisition of the competencies (skills, knowledge, and attitudes) worked on during the course. The exam includes real-life scenarios that students must solve individually in a healthcare context. To pass this test, students must meet various criteria related to patient safety and the course learning outcomes. Although the two parts are held on different days, the OSCE constitutes a single exam with a single global grade. Therefore, it is not possible to sit only one of the parts or retake them separately; any resit or second sitting implies repeating the full OSCE (theory and practice).

Conduct during the OSCE: Any communication between students during the OSCE, any attempt to copy, or the possession and/or use of a mobile phone or other digital devices will result in immediate expulsion from the exam and failure of the entire OSCE. Such behavior may also lead to disciplinary sanctions under current academic regulations.

To pass the final exam (OSCE), students must meet the following safety-related conditions, addressed across the course:

• Obtain a minimum score of 5 out of 10 on the general OSCE.

• Pass the OSCE’s conditioning items: key procedural aspects related to patient safety and/or morbidity–mortality (e.g., sterile technique, dose calculation, ECG interpretation, medication administration).
  Station condition: Failing any conditioning item in a station will result in a 0 for that station. This does not necessarily mean failing the overall OSCE.

• Pass 70% of the critical items: aspects affecting morbidity–mortality (e.g., patient identity, proper needle use, drug expiry, appropriate case management).

• Pass 65% of the minor items: aspects affecting patient safety but not mortality (e.g., transcription of the medical regimen, disinfection of anti-reflux valve, appropriate health education).

Final grade in the first sitting

To calculate the average between continuous assessment and the final exam, students must obtain at least 5 in the OSCE and at least 5 in continuous assessment. Any failed part (continuous assessment or OSCE) must be retaken in the second sitting.

Second sitting

If the OSCE score in the first sitting is above 5 but a condition has not been met, the student may retake that condition in a second opportunity via a partial exam (with faculty agreement).
In this case, up to 3 stations may be assessed, and all must be passed.
If this partial retake is passed, the final OSCE grade will be capped at 5 in the second sitting.
If the student fails continuous assessment, they must sit a written test on the day of the second sitting. The maximum possible grade in this test will be 5.

No Honours (MH) will be awarded in the second sitting.

If the student does not attend the final exam, even with a justified cause, the exam will not be rescheduled due to the complexity of its setup and to preserve fairness for the rest of the students.

The exam review will take place on a date set by the instructor; there will be a single review session (morning and afternoon if on placement). The date will be communicated in advance, and students must request to attend via email. Failure to attend forfeits the right to review.

For subsequent sittings, if offered, the same criteria will apply: the 3rd and 5th sittings will mirror the 1st, and the 4th and 6th will mirror the 2nd. Before re-enrolling in the course, compatibility with the rest of the subjects must be verified.

Honor Matrix Assignment Procedure (MH)

1. The criterion for assigning Honorary Enrolments (MH) is based on the Excellent (9.0).
2. The assignment is solely for the teacher and does not have to give it, even if the student has obtained a mark above 9.0.
3. In case the teacher decides to award MH, he will not take into account the numerical mark and the highest, but will evaluate other factors. The HM might not match the highest numeric score.

Procedure for Non-presented Assignment (NP)

1. To register an NP in the student's file, it must not have been submitted to any of the evaluation tests throughout the assignment.
2. If a student has submitted to one of the evaluation tests, the corresponding percentages in the teaching guide will be applied, with a 0 in those not presented.