The candidate card
Setting
Community clinic
Candidate
You are a doctor at a community clinic. Ms Orla Hurley, aged 34, has had a sore throat, runny nose and mild cough for three days. On examination she has no fever, her chest is clear and her symptoms are typical of a viral upper respiratory tract infection. She has an important work presentation in two days and has told the receptionist she needs antibiotics.
Task (interlocutor: patient)
- Find out about Ms Hurley's symptoms, her expectations and her previous experience with antibiotics
- Explain in simple terms why antibiotics are not recommended for her illness (viral cause, side effects, resistance)
- Respond to her insistence that antibiotics have always helped her before
- Advise on ways to manage her symptoms before her presentation (rest, fluids, simple pain relief, soothing remedies)
- Agree a plan, including when she should return or seek urgent help
In the test you get 3 minutes to read the card and plan, then about 5 minutes to talk. This card is original, written for this site; the interlocutor's card is not shown.
How to approach this card
- Find the real pressure: the presentation in two days. Her request for antibiotics may be about getting well quickly, so ask what she needs from the visit and what she hopes antibiotics will do for her.
- Acknowledge her past experience before explaining. If she says antibiotics have always helped, ask when and what happened. That respects her view and gives you an opening to explain, without telling her she was wrong.
- Share your examination findings first (no fever, clear chest), then the reasons: viral cause, side effects, resistance. Lead with what matters to her. Resistance is abstract, so put side effects and the fact that antibiotics do not act on viruses first.
- Spend more time on what she can do than on what you will not prescribe. Tailor the self-care to her deadline: what to do today and tomorrow to be as comfortable as possible for the presentation, including simple pain relief.
- Close with a clear plan: what to expect, and when to come back or seek urgent help, given as one complete block. Typical error: refusing antibiotics but leaving without a plan she believes in.
Phrases to adapt
Use your own words; these show the register, not lines to memorise.
- I can see how important this presentation is. Let us make a plan to get you through it.
- Tell me about the times antibiotics helped you before.
- I am not dismissing how rough you feel. Your symptoms are real.
- If you are not improving, or anything changes, I want to see you again.
Medical words in plain English
| Term | How you might say it to the patient |
|---|---|
| viral upper respiratory tract infection | A cold-type infection of the nose and throat caused by a virus. |
| antibiotic resistance | Germs becoming harder to kill, so antibiotics work less well when really needed. |
| viral | Caused by a virus, which antibiotics cannot treat. |
How this card is marked
Two assessors mark the recording on nine criteria: intelligibility, fluency, appropriateness of language and resources of grammar and expression (each 0–6), then relationship building, understanding and incorporating the patient's perspective, providing structure, information gathering and information giving (each 0–3). Grade B usually means 5 on each language criterion and 2 on each clinical one. See the AI Speaking practice guide for what each criterion looks for.
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All sets: nurses, doctors, other professions. Your profession's guide: OET Medicine.
Questions about this role-play
Could I offer a delayed prescription as a compromise?
The card's task is to explain why antibiotics are not recommended. Offering one anyway undermines your message. If you feel tempted, stay with the symptom management plan and a clear review arrangement, which gives her something to hold on to.
What if she says she will go to another doctor?
Stay calm and do not threaten or plead. Say you understand how much she needs to feel better and that your advice is based on her examination. Keep the door open by saying you would like to see her again if things change.
What if she asks how long it will last?
The card gives no timeline, so do not state days. Be honest that you cannot promise she will be fully better in two days, and offer what will ease her symptoms and a plan for what to do if she is not improving.
Sources
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