Jobins Training · Free OET Practice
Pharmacy: practise your professional communication.
One full Writing task and one paired Speaking role play, with models, reasoning and a second attempt.
No registrationOriginal practiceModels explainedWriting · Full-length task
A clear medicines letter for a family carer
Attempt the task before opening the model. Use the five-minute reading period to study the notes and task without writing or marking them; write your letter during the following 40 minutes.
Jobins Training · Original OET practice
- WRITING SUB-TEST:
- PHARMACY
- TIME ALLOWED:
- READING TIME: 5 MINUTES
WRITING TIME: 40 MINUTES
Read the case notes and complete the writing task below.
Notes:
Assume that today’s date is 6 November 2026.
Mr Peter Rowan, aged 78, obtains his regular medicines from the community pharmacy where you work.
- Pharmacy:
- Beech Community Pharmacy, 4 Beech Road, Westbridge
PATIENT DETAILS:
- Name:
- Peter Rowan (Mr)
- Date of birth:
- 14 Feb 1948 (78 years)
- Residence:
- 12 Beech Gardens, Westbridge; ground-floor flat
- Family contact:
- Isabel Rowan (daughter); same address
- Living arrangements:
- Daughter staying temporarily after house move
- Previous contact:
- 23 Oct 2026
- Current review:
- 06 Nov 2026
- Main concerns:
- Labels, packaging, remembering doses
Medical history:
Hypertension and hypercholesterolaemia.
Prescriptions stable for over one year.
Hand osteoarthritis; small blister packs difficult.
Near vision reduced; updated spectacles awaited.
Standard medicine labels difficult to read.
No known drug allergies.
No swallowing difficulty or diagnosed cognitive impairment.
No reported dizziness, muscle pain or new symptoms.
Social background:
Retired electrician; enjoys radio and short walks.
Daughter assists with shopping and appointments.
No formal care package.
Patient manages own medicine-taking.
Consents to daughter's assistance and written information.
Regular medicines obtained from this pharmacy.
Repeat supplies every 28 days.
Current medicines – verified 06 Nov 2026:
GP repeat list checked against pack labels.
Amlodipine 5 mg: one tablet each morning.
Indication: blood pressure control.
Atorvastatin 20 mg: one tablet each evening.
Indication: cholesterol management.
No recent dose changes or discontinued medicines.
No short-course prescriptions currently.
No OTC medicines or supplements reported.
Both medicines in labelled original packs.
Presentation – 23 Oct 2026:
Two occasions: unsure whether morning tablet taken.
Missed/repeated doses could not be confirmed.
No symptoms reported during consultation.
Older medicine packs found after house move.
Stored separately in drawer; brought for review.
Weekly organiser requested.
Daughter offered to fill organiser.
Advised assessment first; avoid independently combining supplies.
Support review arranged.
Medicines review – 06 Nov 2026:
All available supplies inspected.
Different manufacturers' packs contained identical medicines.
No duplicate prescription identified.
Excess old supplies returned for pharmacy disposal.
Patient agreed to disposal.
Main barriers: small print, pack opening, dose recall.
Large-print labels and medicine chart supplied.
Patient correctly read names and times.
Accessible packaging discussed and demonstrated.
Suitability and safe storage assessed.
Agreed support plan:
Morning medicine linked to breakfast.
Evening medicine linked to evening meal.
Tick chart immediately after each dose.
Daughter to prompt/check chart with patient's agreement.
Support independence; patient remains responsible for doses.
Uncertain dose: no extra tablet; contact pharmacist.
Missed dose: obtain medicine-specific advice.
Check before changing doses or adding other products.
Do not mix tablets from separate packs.
Follow-up:
Telephone review booked: 13 Nov 2026.
Review understanding, packaging and chart use.
Bring remaining packs if confusion persists.
Weekly organiser not supplied; reassess if needed.
Written summary requested for daughter.
GP informed; no prescription change requested.
Writing Task:
Using the case notes, write a letter to Ms Isabel Rowan, 12 Beech Gardens, Westbridge. With her father’s consent, explain his agreed medicine routine, the assistance she can provide and the planned follow-up. Write in language suitable for a family carer.
In your answer:
- Develop the relevant notes into complete sentences.
- Write in paragraphs rather than note form.
- Use an appropriate letter layout.
The body of your letter should be approximately 180–200 words.
After your attempt: identify the recipient, the purpose, three essential facts and two details you deliberately left out. Then compare your decisions below.
Reveal the model letter
6 November 2026
Ms Isabel Rowan
12 Beech Gardens
Westbridge
Dear Ms Rowan,
Re: Mr Peter Rowan | DOB: 14 February 1948
With your father's consent, I am writing to explain the medicine plan agreed today and how you can support him. His prescriptions remain unchanged.
He takes one amlodipine 5 mg tablet each morning for blood pressure and one atorvastatin 20 mg tablet each evening for cholesterol. We agreed to link these doses to breakfast and his evening meal. Packs from different manufacturers contained the same medicines, and the excess old supplies have been returned to the pharmacy for disposal.
Small labels, difficult packaging and uncertainty about doses have caused problems. We have supplied large-print labels and a medicine chart and demonstrated suitable packaging. Please encourage him to mark the chart immediately after taking each dose. With his agreement, you can remind him and check the chart while helping him remain independent.
If either of you is uncertain whether he has taken a tablet, do not give another; contact us for advice. Please also ask before changing doses or adding other medicines or supplements. We will telephone on 13 November to review the plan. Bring any remaining packs if confusion continues. A weekly organiser has not been supplied, but we can reconsider support if necessary.
Yours sincerely,
Community Pharmacist
Model body: 194 words using a space-separated editorial count. This is one possible response; it is not an officially scored letter or a sentence template to memorise.
Why these details were selected
What the reader needs
- Reader is the daughter: explain medicine names, strength, timing and purpose plainly.
- No prescription change; duplicate-looking packaging is not a second medicine.
- Practical support, patient consent/independence, what to do with uncertainty and booked review.
What can be omitted or condensed
- Remote occupation and hobbies are unnecessary in an instruction letter.
- Do not overload the carer with every normal symptom or a technical medicines-reconciliation narrative.
Accuracy traps
- Do not tell the daughter to double a dose or fill an unassessed organiser.
- Do not call the patient cognitively impaired; the notes identify practical barriers.
- The evening timing is this patient’s agreed prescription routine, not a universal requirement for atorvastatin.
Accuracy repair: a fresh exercise
A draft says: Your father should take an extra tablet if he cannot remember his dose.
Correct it using the case notes before opening the answer.
Check the repaired sentence
If he is unsure whether a dose has been taken, do not give an extra tablet; contact the pharmacist for advice.
The correction preserves what is known, what has happened and what remains outstanding. Compare the changed words with the relevant dated note.
Review the six Writing criteria
| Criterion | Use it to review your attempt |
|---|---|
| Purpose | Can the reader identify the action or explanation needed from the opening? |
| Content | Are essential facts accurate, including dates, status and remaining needs? |
| Conciseness and clarity | Have you selected and combined information without losing necessary meaning? |
| Genre and style | Does the wording suit this recipient’s role and knowledge? |
| Organisation and layout | Do paragraphs help the reader locate the problem, evidence and next step? |
| Language | Are grammar, vocabulary, spelling and sentence links clear and accurate? |
Choose one factual correction and one language improvement for a second draft. This checklist is for learning; it does not calculate an OET grade.
Speaking · One paired role play
Practise the professional conversation
Use 3 minutes to prepare the professional card, then about 5 minutes for the conversation. The candidate stays in the professional role. A partner plays the patient, parent or animal owner. This is one role play; the OET Speaking sub-test contains two.
Read only your own card before starting. The partner should open their card privately and reveal information in response to the conversation. These cards are a separate scenario from the Writing case.
Candidate card · Pharmacist
Setting: Community pharmacy consultation room
You meet Edward, aged 76, who takes two stable daily medicines. Their appearance changed after a different manufacturer’s supply. You have checked the packs and current prescription: the active medicines and strengths are unchanged. He has difficulty reading small labels and worries he has been given an extra tablet. There is no reported overdose or acute illness. Discuss understanding and an appropriate support plan.
Tasks
- Ask Edward to explain which packs he uses and what has confused him; avoid assuming non-adherence.
- Explain the difference between medicine name/strength and manufacturer appearance using the checked labels.
- Explore practical barriers such as print, packaging and remembering whether a dose was taken.
- Agree suitable support, such as clearer labels and a medicine chart, after checking his preferences; explain not to take an extra dose when uncertain.
- Use teach-back with the packs, explain how to seek medicine-specific advice and arrange review.
Partner card — Patient only
Role-player card · Patient
You are Edward, 76. One tablet is now a different colour. You kept the previous pack and wondered whether the new one should be taken as well. You have not taken both, but you are embarrassed to ask. You can read large print and would prefer to manage independently.
- Say: “These do not look like my usual tablets.”
- When invited to show the packs, explain that you retained the old one.
- Only when asked directly, confirm you have not taken both together.
- Say you do not want your daughter to take over all your medicines.
- If a plan is clear, explain back how you will identify the medicines and what you will do if unsure about a dose.
Respond naturally to what is asked. Do not give every detail at once or create an unrelated medical quiz. If the explanation is unclear, ask for clarification.
Review selected exchanges and explanations
These are selected teaching exchanges, not a full five-minute transcript. Compare how the response changes with the concern. Several different responses could work.
Patient: “They look different.”
Pharmacist: “Let us check them together. Can you show me what you have been taking and what you thought this new pack was for?”
Why this helps: Checks actual behaviour before offering an explanation or reassurance.
Patient: “Should I take both?”
Pharmacist: “These checked packs contain the same medicine at the same strength. The new appearance does not mean you need an additional dose. Let us use the name and strength on the labels to match them to your prescription.”
Why this helps: Prevents a duplicate dose using the verified facts of this scenario.
Patient: “I want to manage myself.”
Pharmacist: “That is a useful goal. Would larger labels and a chart you mark after taking each dose help? Please show me how you would use them, and tell me what you would do if you could not remember taking a tablet.”
Why this helps: Supports independence and tests whether the plan is usable.
Repeat with a changed response
Partner now reveals that both packs were taken this morning. Stop treating this as routine packaging reassurance; establish the medicine, dose and timing and seek prompt medicine-specific clinical advice under the pharmacy’s procedure.
Keep your professional role, listen to the changed information and adapt the next step. Do not repeat a memorised answer when the situation has changed.
Review all nine Speaking criteria
| Criterion | Use it to review your attempt |
|---|---|
| Intelligibility | Can your partner follow your speech without repeated effort? |
| Fluency | Can you keep the exchange moving while allowing natural pauses? |
| Appropriateness of language | Does the register and explanation suit this person? |
| Resources of grammar and expression | Can you express time, uncertainty, reasons and choices accurately? |
| Relationship building | Do you show attention to the person’s particular concern? |
| Understanding and incorporating the patient’s perspective | Does the plan respond to their priorities and constraints? |
| Providing structure | Do you signal changes of topic and explain information in manageable stages? |
| Information gathering | Do you ask, listen and clarify rather than assume? |
| Information giving | Do you explain clearly and check what the person has understood? |
Ask your partner for one example of something clear and one moment that needed clarification. If you record yourself on your own device, review only with everyone’s agreement. The website does not record speech or generate an OET score.
Format and clinical background references
Exam format: OET test handbook. These original cases were written for language practice after reviewing official task formats. The following sources inform clinical plausibility; the fictional patient records are not copied from them.