Advanced Technique - Examination

Questions requesting examination findings are common, and perhaps more so than history questions because they are academically easier to write.

Whilst similar to the history questions, there are a couple of additional pitfalls to be aware of.

The key here is to be specific in how you answer these. What do we mean? We mean that you need to give an actual examination finding, with an actual abnormal parameter.

Huh?

Like this:

• “Respiratory rate” would not score, whereas “tachypnoea” would.
• “Heart rate” would not score, whereas “tachycardia” would.
• “Oxygen level” becomes “oxygen saturations below 92%”
• “Temperature” becomes “temperature greater than 38 C”.

You get the idea.

Be specific – general answers do not score.

The other rules of approaches to history questions also apply here- namely:

• Don’t repeat what’s in the stem
• If you can, think broad with a systems approach to these questions.

Stressed? Don’t be. Once again, we show you this in detail with tonnes of worked examples and their full grids.

 For now, remember the three rules above and you will be skipping into the sunset.