The candidate card
Setting
Veterinary clinic
Candidate
You are a veterinarian. Ms Efua Visser, aged 27, has brought her 9-week-old Border Collie puppy in for a first health check. The breeder's records show one vaccination has already been given, and the second puppy vaccination is due today. The examination today is normal. Ms Visser has told the nurse that she has read online that vaccines are 'over-used'. She plans to skip the second vaccination and take the puppy to the local dog park this weekend.
Task (interlocutor: owner)
- Find out about Ms Visser's concerns about vaccination and her plans for the puppy (where she has read about vaccines, what she wants to do this weekend)
- Explain why a puppy needs a full course of vaccinations (protection not yet complete, serious infections such as parvovirus)
- Explain the risks of taking a partly vaccinated puppy to a dog park before the course is finished
- Reassure her about her worries and suggest safe ways to socialise the puppy now (visitors at home, carrying the puppy outside, puppy classes)
- Agree a plan for vaccination and socialisation
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
- Begin by asking where Ms Visser read about vaccines and what exactly worries her, then what she plans this weekend. Listening first matters because a person who feels judged for online reading will stop engaging with you.
- Acknowledge that questioning vaccines is reasonable, then explain simply: the first vaccine has been given but protection is not yet complete, and serious infections such as parvovirus can occur. Keep it to the main point.
- Address the dog park directly and without blame: a partly vaccinated puppy is not yet fully protected, so shared ground carries a risk of serious infection. Avoid frightening detail; link the risk to a plan she can follow.
- Offer socialisation as something she can do now, not a loss: visitors at home, carrying the puppy outside, puppy classes. The trap is saying no without a yes, so give these before asking for her decision.
- If time is short, prioritise today's second vaccination, the dog park advice and one safe socialising activity. Close by agreeing the vaccination plan and asking her to say back what she will do this weekend.
Phrases to adapt
Use your own words; these show the register, not lines to memorise.
- It is good that you are reading up on what is best for your puppy.
- Where did you come across that, and what stood out to you?
- Your puppy is not fully protected yet, and that is why I would avoid the park for now.
- What would you like to do about today's vaccination, now we have talked it through?
Medical words in plain English
| Term | How you might say it to the patient |
|---|---|
| parvovirus | A serious, highly contagious gut infection in dogs that vaccination helps protect against. |
| vaccination course | The set of puppy vaccines given in stages, so protection builds up fully. |
| socialisation | Letting the puppy meet new people, sounds and places safely so it grows up confident. |
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.
More Veterinary Science role-play cards
- Starting insulin for a newly diagnosed diabetic cat Veterinary clinic
- Rabbit with gastrointestinal stasis needing admission Veterinary clinic
- Quality-of-life discussion for an elderly dog Veterinary clinic
All sets: nurses, doctors, other professions. Your profession's guide: OET Veterinary Science.
Questions about this role-play
How do I respond to the claim that vaccines are over-used?
Do not argue the whole claim. Acknowledge it and focus on this puppy: protection is not yet complete and serious infections such as parvovirus are the risk. Offer to talk through her specific concerns and invite her to ask about anything she read.
What if she still refuses the vaccination today?
Do not pressure her. Restate the risk of the dog park clearly, keep the safe socialisation options, and agree a next step such as when she will return. Record her decision and keep the door open for her to change her mind.
Is it enough to just say avoid the dog park?
No. A bare no tends to be ignored. Pair it with what she can do now, such as visitors at home, carrying the puppy outside and puppy classes, so she can still give the puppy good early experiences safely.
Sources
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