EMedBuddyThe AMC clinical exam is OSCE-style: timed stations with simulated patients. You can’t predict the exact cases, but the types of station recur. Knowing the shape of each one - and having a repeatable approach - is what keeps you calm and structured under the clock. Here are ten common types and how to attack them.
Key takeaways
- You can't predict the exact case, but the types of station recur, chest pain, breathlessness, the acutely unwell patient, breaking bad news and more.
- Almost every station rewards the same backbone: introduce + consent → structured history/task → focused exam/explanation → safe management → safety-net.
- Some stations (the angry patient, ethics, consent) are pure communication or judgement tests, not knowledge tests.
- Reading about stations is not the same as performing one, practise each type out loud, against the clock.
1. Chest pain (history + management)
Think "could this kill them?" first. Screen for ACS, PE, aortic dissection, pneumothorax. Take a focused pain history (SOCRATES), risk factors and red flags, then state your immediate, safe plan (e.g. ECG, observations, analgesia, escalation).
2. Acute breathlessness
Differentiate asthma/COPD, pneumonia, PE, heart failure, anaphylaxis. Lead with an ABCDE-style assessment, oxygen and monitoring, then a focused history. Show you can recognise and treat the life-threatening cause first.
3. The acutely unwell / deteriorating patient (ABCDE)
Some stations test whether you can run a structured ABCDE assessment, call for help, and act on findings (oxygen, IV access, fluids, escalation). Say each step aloud; treat as you go rather than completing a full history first.
4. Abdominal pain
Keep a wide differential by region and system (surgical abdomen, biliary, renal, gynae - always consider pregnancy in women of reproductive age and do a pregnancy test). Identify red flags and the patients who need urgent surgical review.
5. Breaking bad news
A pure communication station. Use a SPIKES-style approach: set up privately, find out what they already know, give a warning shot, deliver information in small plain-language chunks, respond to emotion, then summarise and plan. Silence and empathy score points; jargon loses them.
6. The angry or upset patient/relative
Stay calm, acknowledge the emotion, listen without getting defensive, apologise where appropriate, and move toward what you can do. You are marked on de-escalation and professionalism, not on "winning."
7. Informed consent / explaining a procedure
Explain the procedure, benefits, material risks, and alternatives in plain language, check understanding (teach-back), and confirm voluntariness. This mirrors the legal standard of consent - disclose what a reasonable patient in their position would want to know.
8. Counselling / health promotion
E.g. smoking cessation, contraception, a new diagnosis like diabetes. Assess readiness, give clear tailored information, agree a plan together, and arrange follow-up. Patient-centred and specific beats a generic lecture.
9. Paediatric scenario (often with a parent)
Address the parent and child appropriately, recognise the sick child and red flags, and weave in safety-netting and safeguarding awareness. Common themes: fever, the febrile/unwell infant, and reassurance with clear return advice.
10. Ethics / professionalism
Confidentiality, capacity, the mature minor, mandatory reporting, open disclosure. Name the principle, apply it to the scenario, and show you know the limits (e.g. confidentiality vs serious risk to others, mandatory reporting). Reason out loud.
How to practise these
Reading about stations is not the same as performing one. The candidates who pass are the ones who have said it out loud, against the clock, many times - until structure, safety and communication are automatic.
Can I predict the exact cases in the AMC clinical exam?
No, but the types of station recur, chest pain, breathlessness, breaking bad news, the acutely unwell patient and similar themes. Prepare for the type of station, not a specific predicted case.
Is there one approach that works across different station types?
Yes, a universal backbone: introduce and gain consent, take a structured history or task, do a focused examination or explanation, give safe management, and safety-net before closing.
How should I practise these station types?
Out loud, against the clock, repeatedly, until structure, safety and communication become automatic rather than something you have to consciously think through mid-station.