Sydney Language Solutions

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SPEAKING Occupational English Test Preparation: How to Speak Without Getting Stuck 5 minutes may seem like a short time, but if you encounter a topic or situation that is unfamiliar, the 5 minutes can feel like an eternity. OET speaking session is a dialogue between you (the health professional) and the interviewer (the patient). However, the majority of time is devoted to you to show off your speaking skills. The interviewer will be advised to speak minimally unless prompted by you with questions. TIP 1 After the interviewer introduces the scenario, ask questions to clarify or establish the situation/concern more fully. e.g. So how long have you had this pain for? What is exactly is it about the drug that you are concerned about? TIP 2 If you need more time to think about your response but you don’t want a big gap of silence, mirror or reflect the concerns or questions the interviewer raises. This is not only good for you to buy time but also a great way of expressing empathy and demonstrating that you comprehend fully what they are saying. e.g. So from what I can understand Mr/s …., you are worried about your son’s lack of concentration at school. I can see that it must have been so serious that you considered the possibility of an underlying medical complication. I am sure that coming up with a diagnosis would clear a lot of things up for you. TIP 3 Don’t ever assume that the patient knows everything about the medical concern that they are coming to you with. That is why they are consulting with you. Describe and define every basic aspect of their health condition. e.g. Hypotension -> define it/ ask the patient if they fully understand what it is. Particularly if they have concerns with compliance, going into a bit more detail scientifically may be more persuasive for the patient.

TIP 4 If you need to explain to the patient about a certain procedure or therapy, ~remember!~ although the interviewer can see you, the examiner can’t as the role-play is voice recorded. Therefore, make a concerted effort to describe every little detail in words, however obvious it may sound. It is not the knowledge that they are grading you on but your speaking fluency. e.g. using a walking frame: be descriptive right down to which hand/foot goes where and when. TIP 5 If you have no idea about the disease condition/treatment, hypothesise. e.g. That sounds like a respiratory condition which the doctor will be able to clarify to you about. However, from my understanding of respiratory conditions in general, it is important that you are supplied with sufficient oxygen and make sure that your airways are cleared of mucus or any foreign particles etc. TIP 6 Remember to speak slowly and clearly. This will not only stretch out the time and minimise the amount of mistakes that you may say but also dilute out any thick accents.

The OET speaking task – becoming a good communicator Welcome to the OET speaking test. You have 5 minutes to complete your task. Begin. Nurse: Good morning, I hope you had a good sleep. Could you please take your medication now? Patient: Please go away. I am tired. I just need sleep, I do not want to take the medication. Nurse: But I need you to taPatient: I said leave me alone. Nurse: (on the verge of tears) – ok… bye.

A significant factor for success in the OET speaking test is to be prepared for situations such as this. While your grammatically spoken English may be excellent, you are also being tested on your ability to communicate, especially with difficult patients. As health professionals, it is part of our job to approach these circumstances with tact and professionalism, while at the same time displaying assertiveness and confidence. And in the OET test, it just might be your job to communicate with a role player who has been instructed to refuse all your advice and act upset. This can make you nervous. This can make you forget your lines. This can make your face flush beetroot red and wish that you were at home in the safety of your blanket, away from the OET test. But there are many strategies you can use to turn this type of situation to your advantage, and instead showcase your excellent communication skills.

Remember – practice makes perfect!

TIPS on How to resolve concerns in SpeakingPart 1 In the speaking component of the OET exam, you are given a clinical scenario where a patient approaches you usually with a concern. The concerns can be classed generally into two classes: Concerns about the ILLNESS and concerns about the TREATMENT aka non-compliance. Since there is a lot to cover, I will give tips on only the first class of concerns in this month’s blog. 1) THE ILLNESS. Generally a lot of patient’s fears/reservations/anger stems from the unknown. Some of these medical diagnosis can appear foreboding simply by the fact that it comes from the doctor or the name itself. So most of the time this can be resolved by simply explaining all the aspects of the illness in a clear and reasonable way. Some aspects of the illness that you may have to explain are; -What the exact nature of the diagnosis is. -How seriously it will affect their health and daily function.

-What the treatments/therapy will involve- it is important to explain why the treatment is given. -What the prognosis will be. Since this component of the exam will not be assessed on the content/medical knowledge of the exam candidate, you do not need to know every illness under the sun to prepare for this. However, you may need to know some common ones just so you do not get nervous for stuck with what to say. Common ones could be hypertension, diabetes, stroke/heart attack, quitting smoking/alcohol, immunizations etc. e.g. I understand that you are worried about your hypertension. Hypertension is an elevation of your blood pressure. This means that your heart has to worker a lot harder than normal to pump blood around your body.

If it isn’t treated there is an increased chance that your heart may fail or that you may get a heart attack or stroke. Therefore, it is vital that you keep your blood pressure under control. Blood pressure is affected by many things. Firstly, how much water and salt is in your body. If you have too much salt in your diet, this can make your blood volume greater and therefore increase your blood pressure. Secondly, the condition of your blood vessels. If your blood vessels becomes less elastic due to age, damage from smoking or too much fat deposits from a fatty diet and not enough exercise, then you will more likely not be able to regulate your blood pressure. Thirdly, different levels of hormones can be released by various triggers such as stress, drinking, obesity, diabetes etc that contribute to or worsen the hypertension. It is a lot to take in, but I hope this helps you to see why it is so important for you to make various changes in your lifestyle. Reducing your salt and fat

intake in your diet, exercising, avoiding smoking and alcohol are crucial for lowering your blood pressure. If you can do this you will be able to significantly reduce the risk of the illnesses I mentioned earlier which may lead to early death. Lifelong intake of blood pressure lowering medication is preferrably a last resort so I would advise you to take these lifestyle intervention measures first.

How to Improve Speaking at Home Most students ask me for tips on how they can improve their speaking when they’re at home, without a Sydney Language Solutions teacher/tutor to practise with. Below are some of my suggestions. 1.

The first and most obvious suggestion is to practise with someone who speaks English at home. Perhaps a family member. Perhaps a friend. Or, even better, a friend or family member who is ALSO doing the Occupational English Test. Get them to practise different tasks with you and give you feedback afterwards about your fluency, the clarity and speed of your speech and about the language you used.

2.

Another way is to practise by yourself. This can involve, for instance, recording yourself speaking! For this exercise, I particularly encourage you to check your speed (tell yourself to SLOW DOWN!) and to check whether or not you say words like “um”, “uh”, “like” or “er” which can affect your fluency. Count how many “um”s you say!

3.

One final suggestion is, indeed of speaking, you can PLAN out the conversation and write down what you would say in the scenario. This can improve both your grammar and your sentence structure. Think of different phrases you can use to reassure patients, to advise patients or to ask clear questions.

Tips to Ease the OET Speaking Nerves The unpredictable nature of the speaking exam is something which makes all OET students very nervous. But those who have done it before will tell you – it’s not that bad! Here are some things to keep in mind and hopefully it’ll ease those nerves.

1. Become familiar with the structure of the speaking exam. The first section is a ‘warm up’ conversation. This is recorded, but not assessed and will not affect your speaking score. This is a chance for you to have a chat with the roleplayer and to relax! This is then followed by your first speaking task. You will be given a few minutes to prepare. You will then be expected to roleplay and complete the task within approximately 5 minutes. Finally, you will do a second speaking task. The scenario will be different however you will still be given preparation time and 5 minutes to do the speaking. DID YOU KNOW you can listen to sample speaking exams on the OET website? This will definitely

help

you

to

familiarise

with

the

exam.

Check

out

this

link:

http://www.occupationalenglishtest.org/Display.aspx?tabid=2425 2. The OET is NOT testing your medical knowledge – it is testing your level of English. This means that if you don’t understand a certain medical term on the speaking task, please ask for help! Also, don’t fret and panic about giving the most scientifically accurate information to the patient… just advise them to the best of your ability. 3. The roleplayer on the day will not be assessing you. They are there simply to act. You should use them to help you with your task as much as possible. Ask them questions! 4. You get to keep the roleplay card throughout the speaking task. Don’t be afraid to use the roleplay card during your task – you are allowed to look at it, if you like! This also means you should write any helpful notes for yourself during the preparation time. You can underline words, highlight sections… whatever will help you to do well.

More Tips to Improve OET Speaking

1. Explain everything in as much detail as possible!

Remember your speaking task is marked using the recording of your voice. This means that the examiners cannot see your hand actions or facial expressions. Therefore, you need to explain everything in words – clearly. Step by step. Example: Explaining how to inject insulin. Firstly, you should choose your site for injection (such as, the abdomen). Then, you need to pinch the skin between your thumb and index finger. Then, hold the needle at 45 degrees to the surface and inject!

2. As the example above, use words like firstly and secondly, etc. This is recommended as it gives your speaking task a sense of structure. It allows you to explain medical procedures in a simple, systematic sequence. Some other words you can use include in addition, furthermore, following on from that… and the list goes on. You can use these in writing, too!

3. Clarify with the patient and check that they understand you. As medical procedures can be quite complicated and detailed, it may be difficult for the patient to follow what you are saying. To overcome any confusion and to clarify with the patient, use pauses throughout your speaking to give the patient a chance to ask their questions. In addition, you can ask them questions like “Are you following?” “Does this make sense?” “Do you have any questions about this procedure so far?” I hope these tips can help you improve in OET speaking and reduce those nerves! Good luck.

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5 Simple Steps to Improve OET Speaking 1 . D o n ’ t b e af r ai d to a s k q u es ti o n s . Before you begin each speaking task, you will have 2-3 minutes of preparation time. As you are reading the task, if there are any aspects which you don’t understand, it is worthwhile to ask the roleplayer as they may be able to help you out. You will NOT be marked down for asking questions.

2 . Fol lo w th e d o t po i n ts i n o rd er. This is NOT something you MUST do, but it is highly recommended. By following the dot points in order, you will not get lost or confused during the task and this will ensure that you are able to engage with the roleplayer (i.e. the patient).

3 . I f y o u g et s tu c k, u s e th e p hr a s es / ter m i n o l o g y o n t h e c ar d . You are allowed to do this. This is particularly useful if, perhaps, the topic is unfamiliar to you.

4 . L i s ten to th e s a m p l es o n th e O E T w eb s i te. Most students neglect to check the official OET website for samples and materials. In fact, they have uploaded 2 nursing speaking tasks and 2 medicine speaking tasks. Have a listen to these as they will familiarise you with the structure of the speaking exam, even if you are not taking the nursing/medicine exam.

5 . A n d , a s a l w ay s … p r a c ti s e, pr a c ti s e, P R A C T I SE . With a family member. With a friend. With your dog? Even by recording yourself! Just practise!!

The A’s of OET Speaking

Your palms are sweaty, your heart’s racing… and you stare, dumbfounded, as your mind goes blank. To avoid a situation like this happening in your OET speaking exam, you should be prepared for what to expect and how you should respond. The roleplay that you are given will require you to use appropriate language and phrases to do one or more of the following things: 1.

Assess the patient, the patient’s background or the current situation. This is often what you do in the opening section of the speaking – you find out (i.e. assess) what it is that the patient wants!

2.

Assure the patient about their particular health condition, their family member’s illness or an upcoming operation, etc. The patient is anxious and you need to calm them down… what do you say? You should use empathic language, exhibiting your understanding to the patient.

3.

Advise the patient about lifestyle changes, how to manage their diabetes/health disease or what are the harms/benefits. Here you need to make appropriate suggestions for the patient’s situation.

4.

Arrange a follow-up appointment or referral, if appropriate to the situation. You are showing the patient that you are taking immediate action to help them.

Now it’s up to you to carefully consider each of these types of speaking tasks and come up with some appropriate sentences, questions or phrases that can help you communicate these things to the patient.

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The OET speaking task – becoming a good communicator Welcome to the OET speaking test. You have 5 minutes to complete your task. Begin. Nurse: Good morning, I hope you had a good sleep. Could you please take your medication now? Patient: Please go away. I am tired. I just need sleep, I do not want to take the medication. Nurse: But I need you to ta-

Patient: I said leave me alone. Nurse: (on the verge of tears) – ok… bye. A significant factor for success in the OET speaking test is to be prepared for situations such as this. While your grammatically spoken English may be excellent, you are also being tested on your ability to communicate, especially with difficult patients. As health professionals, it is part of our job to approach these circumstances with tact and professionalism, while at the same time displaying assertiveness and confidence. And in the OET test, it just might be your job to communicate with a role player who has been instructed to refuse all your advice and act upset. This can make you nervous. This can make you forget your lines. This can make your face flush beetroot red and wish that you were at home in the safety of your blanket, away from the OET test. But there are many strategies you can use to turn this type of situation to your advantage, and instead showcase your excellent communication skills. Remember – practice makes perfect!

READING Occupational English Test Preparation: Reading Section The reading section of the OET exam is for some the trickiest part of the whole exam. Part A in particular can be quite intimidating because of its very short time limit. To get through this part, the key strategy is to always be very conscious of time. The very first thing to do is of course to skim through the texts and read the titles in order to get an idea of which text is talking about what. The headlines often contain information on whom/what the text is about, where the information is from and how it might be relevant to the general topic. Also, it is a good way to see what type of information each text might contain. Sometimes, the texts are about a person’s personal experience with a disease or issue. Other times, it could be just a table containing statistics or other types of data. It could also be a health professional’s professional opinion, the description of an illness or disease, or even how to treat or manage a particular condition.

Once you have identified the subject of each text, you are ready to start answering some of the questions. Each time that a blank space comes up in the summary and answer sheet, you already know where the information that you are looking for is most likely going to be. You can then go straight to that text and skim through it quickly to get the information that you are looking for. Be careful when looking at data however! There can be some traps laid out for you. Really pay attention to the way that the questions are worded. “Adult men under 70” might be labelled as “males 18-69” in a text. You must make sure to understand what is being asked of you as well as what the text is actually telling you.

As always, you have been keeping a steady eye on your watch during this whole time. You notice that you have about one minute left and unfortunately, you know that there are still too many blanks on your paper for you to realistically hope to finish everything in time. Do

not despair! It is now time to realize that the last points that you are going to scrape up are not going to come from finding the answers directly from the text. Read through the final questions and try to answer them either using your memory of the texts that you have just read or just common knowledge. Sometimes, all that the sentence is missing is just a preposition or an adjective which is an easy way to score an extra point or two. Fill in everything that you can and place your pencil down when they call the time, and be happy that you have accomplished all that you could.

Part A Reading: From impossibly hard to naturally easy

Do you find the Part A OET reading task too hard? You probably don’t have a good system for approaching the test.

This task can seem impossible. You have 15 minutes to read four texts and then answer more than 20 questions. And you have to get the grammar correct too! I once had a student who had below than average spoken English, and she had a lot of trouble with the writing task too. However, unlike the rest of the class, she found Part A to be naturally easy. Even though English was her second language, she could finish any Part A task I threw at her with minutes to spare. Why was she so good at it?

This was because she had a systematic approach to handling the test – and to do well in the test, you will need to internalize this approach so that it becomes automatic. How do you do this? Step 1: Do not read the entire texts! You need to rapidly scan and skim for certain details that will help you characterize each of the four texts so that you know where to find you answer. These details include things like: 

Headings



Author



Year



Location

Now you need to quickly give a unique personality to each of the texts so that you can remember which one is which. For example: “Text 1: Spanish study from 1999; Text 2: Statistics from 2005; Text 3: Study by O’Neill et al.; Text 4: Australian Guidelines for approaching asthma”. Step 2: Now keywords in the gap-fill will tell you immediately which text you need to find your answer from. The first sentence might read: “Asthma is a common condition. In Spain, _____________ of people suffer from asthma.”Which text are you going to get your answer from?

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Tips for Improving OET Reading Reading B – Assigning titles to paragraphs/articles A common question type in Reading B is one where you asked “What is the most appropriate title for this paragraph?” or “What would make a suitable title for this article?”. It is useful to consider how best to answer these questions. The general principle that works for questions like this is to ask yourself “Which title covers everything in the paragraph, but is as narrow

as possible?”. This principle might seem contradictory at first – how can a title cover everything, but be narrow? However, we will consider an example to illustrate the principle at work. Example 1 Alcoholic cirrhosis is the most common cause of hepatic cancer in Australia, accounting for approximately 60% of diagnoses, closely followed by hepatitis B virus, which is responsible for an additional one fifth of these patients. Other, less common, aetiologies include other viral hepatitides, hepatitis of non-infectious causes, aflatoxin exposure, haemochromatosis, Wilson’s disease, Type 2 diabetes and haemophilia. Which of the following titles is most appropriate for this paragraph? A) Complications of alcoholic cirrhosis B) Risk factors for hepatic cancer C) Alcoholic cirrhosis in the aetiology of hepatitis B D) Causes of hepatic illness At first glance, answer A looks like it could fit – the text talks about alcoholic cirrhosis leading to the complication of hepatic cancer. However, this title only really applies to the first sentence, and the rest of the paragraph has no relevance to alcoholic cirrhosis. Similarly, answer C is incorrect because it only considers terms in the first sentence, and is also incorrect as the paragraph considers alcoholic cirrhosis and hepatitis B in the aetiology of hepatic cancer. Both B and D do fit the whole paragraph, but the most appropriate title of these two will be the one that is most narrow. The article doesn’t talk about hepatic illness in general, but instead focuses on hepatic cancer – D is too broad, where B fits the paragraph perfectly. The same principle can be applied to questions asking you to give a title to the whole article – make sure that your title choice can be applied to any given paragraph in the article. Unlike Reading A, in Reading B you have a bit more time to read and process the text to get a general feel for the information in the article, and this can help your choice of a title.

Tips for Improving OET Reading at Home Many of my students struggle to complete either part A or part B of the reading for a number of reasons. Part A requires you to be able to quickly skim read and pick out key words that will guide you to the answer, while Part B is a test of your reading comprehension and will highlight a need to improve general vocabulary and understanding of the written language. Below are some of my suggestions on how to improve your reading at home. 1.

Get into the habit of reading every day. Whether it is an English novel, the newspaper or a magazine it is very important to read something every day, or as regularly as possible to improve your reading speed and comprehension. For the OET in particular it would be a good idea to read scientific journal articles online from wites such as Medline, EBSCO and PubMed, or read information on medical websites such as the BMJ (British Medical Journal).

2.

Following on from the above suggestion, when you find a word that you do not understand while you are reading, copy it down into a book with the dictionary definition for future reference. I find that a lot of my students miss out on choosing the correct answer in Reading Part A and B because they come across a word that forms part of the answer but they do not know what it means. Therefore, it is extremely important to read regularly and write down new words when you come across them. To really improve your vocabulary put some time aside in your day to also revisit the new words you have written down so that you learn them for the future.

3.

Finally be smart about what you read and try to summarise the meaning to test how well you understand the text. This is an exercise you can do to see how well you are able to understand what you have read. While you are reading a book/newspaper/magazine pick a page, or a few paragraphs and read them, then try to summarise what you have just read either verbally or by writing a small summary.

Hopefully these small tips will help improve your reading skills immensely. Best of luck in the future with the OET!

Overcoming the Fear of OET Reading Passages – Part 1 Comprehension can be challenging because, apart from assessing your English vocabulary skills, it is a test of your understanding and interpretation of extensive passages in English. This sparks cries of fear from OET students. Although you have 45 minutes to tackle 20 questions from two texts in the OET, you need to have some good techniques under your belt to help you overcome your fear of the reading passages. #1 Start with the questions You should start with the questions to give you an indication of which paragraph to read. This is because, if you read the entire passage, you will probably not recall all the finer details anyway and will waste time reading over it again. #2 Circle conjunctions that link ideas together As you read the appropriate paragraph of the passage, circle words like ‘but’ or ‘however’ or ‘in contrast’ which show two contrasting ideas. Or perhaps phrases like ‘in addition’ or ‘furthermore’ that show similar ideas. Or, if any, try to spot ‘which causes’ or ‘leading to’ which show a cause and effect relationship! #3 RTFQ = Read The Full Question! Once you have a good understanding of the relevant paragraphs, return to the question and read all the options carefully. This is because often there is simply one word that can affect whether the answer is right or wrong. By coupling these simple techniques with constant reading of medical passages to build your vocabulary, you can surely gradually overcome your fear of OET reading.

Overcoming the Fear of OET Reading Passages – Part 2

My previous blog post (Overcoming the Fear of OET Reading Passages – Part 1) outlined some key techniques you can use to tackle Part B of the OET reading component. In this post, I will further discuss techniques about how to approach the comprehension that I hope you will find useful in your preparation.

#1 Eliminate answers It is often very hard to see the answer straightaway as there may be several similar answers. However, to make things easier, you should start by eliminating the options which are blatantly incorrect. This narrows down the amount of options to choose from, giving you a higher chance of choosing the correct option.

#2 Familiarise yourself with statistical conversions If the questions include statistics, you should be very careful in interpreting and matching it to the data presented in the text. They may further trick you by changing the statistics a little – for instance, you should know that “1 in 5” is the same as “20%”. You should also take note that if it says “43 per thousand of the population” this equates to approximately “4 – 5% of the population” (do the maths!).

#3 Options that are too ‘certain’ are often incorrect In medicine, there is a lot of uncertainty and rarely are things absolutely definitive. For this reason, if a multiple choice option uses words such as “strongly associated” or “directly related” or “definitely” or any other ‘definitive’ words … it is usually wrong! It is ONLY correct if the statement is exactly stated in the text.

Comprehension can certainly be very difficult but with the right strategy and ongoing practice of some key techniques, OET reading can hopefully seem more like a friend than a foe.

What to initially read in reading part A. For reading part A, because you really don’t have much time to waste in 15 minutes, I would advise you to read only a few select things first before attempting to answer the gap fills. Firstly, read the text stimulus headings, taking note of the key words and what aspect of the overall topic it is covering. For instance, if the entire topic is on vasectomy, then text A may be on the associated risks of prostate cancer in those who have undergone vasectomy, text B may be on the incidence of vasectomy over age and years, text C on the complications of vasectomy and it’s reversibility, text D on thereversibility of vasectomy. By noting this, when in the question it mentions vasectomy reversal, you can be aware to refer to either text C or D for the answer. Furthermore, as the question passage is of a reporting form, it will often refer to the sources from which it is drawing information from before going onto speak about its content. Therefore, these will be cues for you to know which text to locate your answer. It is important to take note not only of the headings but also what text type it is. For example, is it a study, a research abstract, a literature review, a case study, a statistic, a newspaper journal, a report, a Q&A patient brochure etc? So in the question sheet it might say “according to a case study performed…” and if you had noted that text B was a case study then you can refer to that text to scan for the answer. I think you get the idea so I will list the features to look out for before you begin attempting to answer the questions from Part A reading. 1.

Heading: and key words/topics in that heading/subheading (n.b. subheadings can be the questions in a Q&A, the aims of a research abstract)

2.

Text type: study, report, experiment, survey, statistic, case study, literature review

3.

Authors: e.g. Wilson et al.

4.

Year of publication: e.g. the 2008 study.

5.

Place/country/name of publication/study: e.g US study, Canadian report, the Age newspaper.

After having glanced for this information, which should only take you a few seconds, then you go on to attempt the questions.

OET Reading – How to Practise for Faster Reading and Understanding The reading section of the OET is about reading quickly and actively as well as having a good understanding of the passage. These skills can be practised. You should practise increasing your reading speed by finding new medical passages online or in a printed journal and reading them at home. Time yourself and challenge yourself to increase your speed each time. You also need to be able to retain the information – so try writing down what you remember after reading

the passage.

You should

then aim to increase

the

amount

you

remember each time you practise. Eventually, you will have increased the speed at which you read as well as the amount of information you remember from your reading. As an extra plus, you will have expanded your medical vocabulary (which can definitely be helpful in the OET and your professional life!) because of all the new scientific articles/passages you have read! …. so practise, practise, PRACTISE!

The Most Important Thing to Remember about the OET Whether it is your first time, or your second/third/fourth time, sitting the Occupational English Test can be very nerve-racking. Your palms will sweat, you’ll feel palpitations and your breaths will be shallower. A common feeling is that you’ll feel as if you can’t remember a SINGLE thing medically-related because you’re so nervous. Luckily for you, the most important thing to remember about the OET is that: The OET does NOT test your medical knowledge. It is simply testing your ENGLISH. So what does this mean? For the listening, it means that, even if you don’t know anything about the topic/s being discussed, you can still pass if you listen to the conversation carefully.

For the reading, it also means that if the topic is something you have never read about, you can still pass both parts A and B through careful reading and analysis of the texts. The answers require no prior medical knowledge. For the writing, it means that when you come across a completely new scenario in the case notes, you can just base your letter on the notes given (obviously). And finally, for the speaking, it means that you can actually – and a lot of students don’t realise this – make information up! You will not get penalised for incorrect content, as long as you sound confident in what you’re saying. So there you have it. Don’t stress if you come across a new topic!

WRITING

FAQs in OET Writing – for Nursing students In my experience of being an OET teacher, I have seen many Nursing students take the Sydney Language Solutions OET courses and then go on to sit the OET examination. In that time, I have come across some questions that Nursing students frequently ask me. I will share some of these in this blog and provide the subsequent answers. What kind of a letter will I be writing? Most of the time you will be writing a referral letter based on the case notes provided. However, this has been known to change in some exams, so you should also prepare to write a letter to advise or inform a patient/carer, or a letter of transfer, following their discharge from your care. Will I always be writing to another nurse? No, there is no guarantee that you will be writing to a nurse. Of course sometimes, you will be writing to a nurse at another hospital or at a community centre or a nursing home. However, you may also be expected to write to a physiotherapist, a doctor or, perhaps even, the carer or family member of the patient. What date do I put at the top?

Don’t stress over this minor detail. This really doesn’t matter too much but students commonly ask me this question. I usually suggest writing the discharge date or the date of the most recent presentation. Or, if in doubt, just write today’s date. Are the address, date, subject line and salutation (i.e. Dear Nurse,) included in the word count? No, these are not included in the word count of 180-200 words. The word count begins at the introduction – that is, when you start writing ‘I am writing to refer…’ – and includes up until your conclusion. But they are still very important elements of your letter because they contribute to its layout. They make the letter actually LOOK like a letter!

Another tips for OET Writing “The” patient A common mistake that ESL students make in the writing section is when making reference to the patient. This is done as necessity all throughout the letter. Letter header The patient’s full name and date of birth or age should be mentioned right at the start of the letter in the letter header “Re: (patient’s first name AND surname, date of birth).” This should always be included in a referral letter as the doctor or health specialist that you are writing to will most likely have hundreds of patients they see and need a quick way of filing and identifying patients without mixing them up. First paragraph In the introductory paragraph of the letter, you will invariably be mentioning the patient. It is important to mention at least the patient’s first name or their surname with appropriate title of Mr/Ms when referring to them. Body paragraphs. Ideally you would mention the patient’s name at the first sentence of every new paragraph. You would refer to the patient by their name if there is more than one person involved in the patient’s case. For example, the patient’s name may be mentioned when describing reports from a collateral account like a parent to not confuse the two.

Otherwise, you can refer to the patient as “the patient” or she/he etc as appropriate grammatically. Oftimes I see students just writing “patient” instead of “the” patient. It is always “the patient.” It may seem like a pedantic pointer but always remember this is a English test so proper grammar counts!

OET Writing: Treasure Vs. Trash! The writing task of the OET is a test of your resource of English language skills as well as your ability to comprehend the situation presented to you. It is this comprehension of the stimulus material that is vital to helping you determine what to include (in other words, TREASURE) in your letter and what NOT to include (i.e. TRASH). So how should you decide what’s treasure? Consider the following: 1.

Your purpose/reason for writing the letter –for example, if you are writing a referral letter for a patient with a SPECIFIC condition (e.g hip replacement) then you should only include the relevant, important details regarding that complaint (e.g. aspirin given, dressings applied daily, etc.)

2.

Your audience – think about who you are writing to and WHAT they already know. For instance, if you are writing to the parents of a young patient, then they will already know her medical background/family background, etc. so you don’t have to include it! However, if you are referring them to a new medical professional, then the medical/family background should be outlined.

3.

Your

current

situation

–always

keep

in

mind

what

is

going

on

with

the

patient/situation at the moment and what role your letter plays in the situation. This will help you to choose the appropriate language and tone to express your letter. Sometimes you may get 3 pages of case notes and this can seem quite overwhelming. By considering the things I have mentioned above, I hope you can confidently break the case notes down into a well-written letter.

The two most important things examiners are looking for for A level writing

In my years of teaching OET, I have marked many referral letters and I have found two key features that distinguishes the truly excellent writers from the not so excellent writers. The two features are 1. CLARITY and 2. ORDER. When students write legibly, use correct spelling, punctuation, syntax, letter format, paragraphing, grammar and expression of their ideas there is CLARITY. I can not emphasis enough, though these aspects may seem minor and therefore unimportant, they are not. This is what differentiates between a winning writer and a non-A grade. Furthermore, for a marker with hundreds of papers to grade, anything to make it easier for the examiner to read is CONSIDERATE. This in turn will ultimately win the favour of your examiner over the hundreds of candidates who do not take these things into consideration. Secondly, when students are able to organise the list of patient file information into clear paragraphs, that contain only the most relevant and grouped information, it is ORDERED. Think of it like cleaning. When you clean, you sort the socks into one pile, the shirts in another etc. In the same way, even though there maybe a whole list of medical history or presenting complaints, consider, – if it is a lengthy chronic disease history, to place the most significant turn of events into each paragraph chronologically, – if it is multiple disease states, to group their progression, treatment and outcomes in each paragraph per disease. There are many other ways of ordering the body of the letter, which we teach you at OET because each patient file is so different. All in all, the most sophisticated writings are the ones where there is a logical order in which the patient’s case is depicted. My last tip for today is that as with anything in life, begin every act with love for the other person in mind. In the case of OET, mindfulness of the circumstances and desires of the examiner. They want to read through a letter quickly and smoothly without having to stop here and there because they can not understand something. So make sure, if you have time at the end, to proof read and check that all the above mentioned is done. Clear understanding, isn’t that the core of communication?

LISTENING

How to Score Maximum Marks in OET Listening Students think the OET listening task is difficult for multiple reasons, for example: “The speakers talk too quickly!” or “I can’t write fast enough!” or “It’s so hard to think about spelling and grammar whilst listening!”, etc. Below are a few simple tips to help you score maximum marks:

1.

SKIM through the questions and get a general idea of the topic at the time given at the

start 2.

UNDERLINE and listen out for the key words of each question so you can listen out for

them during the dialogue 3.

PREDICT some answers if you can – e.g. if the question says “What risk factors are

mentioned by the speaker for cardiovascular disease?” 4. • 5.

WRITE concise phrases instead of full sentences For instance, “runny nose” instead of “he had a runny nose” DO use common abbreviations such as:

•

“HR” for heart rate

•

“SOB” for shortness of breath

•

Arrows to indicate INCREASE or DECREASE

•

Check the OET website for what abbreviations are allowed!

6.

USE your own abbreviations (for example, ‘yrs’ instead of ‘years’) then correct them

when you have time later 7.

WRITE as you listen – and work on improving this!

8.

DON’T try to rephrase what is being said as this will waste time

9.

FIX up spelling, grammar and tenseduring the pauses between the questions, and

during the time given at the end of the task 10.

MOVE on to the next question if you realise you have missed one, then go back and

GUESS an answer if you can 11.

PRACTISE as much as you can!!!!!

OET: How to say no to test anxiety? 1. Be prepared. How come you can be confident if you are not prepared, in everything you do, not just for exam alone? Summary the main point for each chapter can save you lots of time.

2. Study efficiently. There is no genius, genius is trained. Therefore, don’t just begin to study three nights before the exam. You simply kill your brain with the overwhelming terminology and can’t get good result definitely. Study is a lifelong process, therefore, it is essential that you can organize your study schedule and stick with it. 3. Love your body Treat your body well and it will pay back for sure. Sleep well and have a nice meal before you sit for the exam. 4. Group work Study in groups for the clinical exams may be useful. You can never predict how much you can learn from others friends 5. Answer the ones you know first. Try to answer all the questions you know, leave time for the tricky one. Never invest too much time one question, otherwise you will certainly run out of time to finish others questions. 6. Yes! Be focus! Some students may leave early in the test but it doesn’t mean you need to be rush. Steady wins the race! Therefore, concentrate on what you are doing, ignore what others are doing. Make the most of your exam period!

Common General Questions about the OET In this blog, I will outline some of the common general questions that students in my classes have asked me regarding the OET. In fact, most of this information can be found on the Occupational English Test official website but I have discussed them here for easy access. How do I sign up for the exam? Does Sydney Language Solutions do it for us? Signing up for the exam is easy – you just log onto the official Occupational English Test and follow the links. Sydney Language Solutions tutors aim to help you to learn strategies to pass the exam, we will not sign you up for the exam. That is for you to do in your own time. If you have any issues though, you can always discuss with our teachers. I’ve just paid for the exam but they haven’t told me the venue or time? Don’t worry! The venue and time of your exam is emailed to you one week prior to the test date, so wait until then for this information. If, during that week, you still haven’t received anything – then it’s important to contact the OET centre and check your registration. Should I use pen or pencil in the exam? For MOST of the components, it actually doesn’t matter if you use pen or pencil! My best advice is to use whichever writing utensil you feel most comfortable writing in because you will be using it a LOT on the exam day. However, for reading part B, you will need a pencil to fill in the multiple choice answer sheet. These are all very common concerns for the OET student – you’re not alone!

Recommended Books for the OET Student Cambridge English for Nursing (Intermediate Plus) Student’s Book with Audio CDs

This book can be bought at slsbooks.com.au This book provides a range of exercises to develop both your nursing knowledge as well as your language and communication skills. There are listening activities reflecting everyday nursing scenarios and sections that focus on communication (such as how to give advice), which are important for OET speaking roleplays. The section on abbreviations and acronyms used in healthcare will be useful for OET writing, as well as the online glossary with a pronunciation guide. You can also review your knowledge of common nursing scenarios to prepare for the speaking exam – such as in respiratory care, nursing wound care, etc. Cambridge English for Nursing Pre-intermediate Student’s Book with Audio CD

This book can be bought at slsbooks.com.au Units such as ‘Caring for patients after an operation’ and diabetes management will be vital in preparing for your OET speaking exam as it is a common scenario. This book can also be used review your language skills with listening activities and a focus in every chapter on communication

–

such

as

showing

empathy

during

hospital

interactions.

This

is

recommended for the nursing student seeking to review their basic nursing skills and techniques, as well as basic medical sciences. English for Medicine in Higher Education Studies

This book can be bought at slsbooks.com.au This book is designed for students who plan to take a course in the field of medicine entirely or partly in English. Complete with audio for lecture and seminar excerpts, these are perfect for the OET student studying for the listening component of the exam. I particularly recommend utilising their great tips for note-taking (useful for OET listening) and recognising digressions, and choosing the vital information from the irrelevant information of a text.

Students can also use the exercises with figures and diagrams to develop your skills in interpretation of figures, in preparation for the OET reading. English for Nursing, Academic Skills

This book can be bought at slsbooks.com.au This book is great for the Nursing student. There are sections on critical thinking in Nursing, a vital skill to incorporate and develop during medical studies, whether in Nursing or Medicine. For the students preparing for the OET in particular, specific chapters of the book focusing on reading and skimming skills may reveal new strategies you can use to tackle your OET reading. The section on ‘Developing Note-Taking Skills’ will assist in both your study and work environments, as well as in the OET, especially in the Listening section. I also particularly recommend this book to develop your understanding of research terminology. English in Medicine: A Course in Communication Skills

This book can be bought at slsbooks.com.au English in Medicine is an introductory text for overseas health professionals wanting to review their basic communication skills, perhaps in preparation for the OET exam. It provides insight into a range of clinically relevant tasks, such as taking a detailed patient history, communicating with the patient during the physical examination as well as completing clinical notes. Suitable for health professionals just starting out in an English-speaking environment, there are sample patient-doctor dialogues that the student can listen to, accompanied with the appropriate transcript, which can be used to practice for the OET listening component. In addition, the section on search strategy can be relevant to your other medical studies. Oxford English for Careers Nursing 1: Student’s Book

This book can be bought at slsbooks.com.au Short exercises and simple language are the benefits of this book for the student who is beginning their studies in English. The book advances from more general chapters regarding the hospital team and environment, to more specific topics include mental health nursing and managing a patient’s medications. Use the language spot to revise your grammar skills, including prepositions or the passive form. A basic, easy-to-use revision textbook if you’re looking for one to review and prepare for the OET exam. Oxford English for Careers Nursing 2: Student’s Book

This book can be bought at slsbooks.com.au This book progresses on from Book 1, with a more detailed focus on areas of Medicine, ranging from Obstetrics to Renal and Psychiatry, suitable for the more advanced student. A more comprehensive revision of essential writing, speaking, listening and reading communication skills is provided to help pass your OET as well as to work as a nurse. Signs and symptoms relevant to each discipline are reviewed and discussed, useful for writing and speaking in the OET. Again, the language spot will assist in revision of grammar and vocabulary. Professional English in Use Medicine

This book can be bought at slsbooks.com.au Designed to assist those who wish to improve in their interpretation and fluency of medical journals and textbooks, Professional English in Use Medicine will take you through the various body systems and the relevant terminology that is commonly used in each specialty. Students may also find the sections on history-taking, physical examinations as well as

communicating treatment and management to be useful to their studies. For the OET student, this is a concise textbook to review your basic medical terminology as you begin to undertake your studies and work in an English-speaking setting.

FAQs in OET Writing – for Medicine In my time as an OET teacher at Sydney Language Solutions, I have seen many Medicine students take the OET examination. Here are some questions that Medicine students frequently ask me and I will provide the subsequent answers. What kind of a letter will I be writing? You will be writing a referral letter based on the patient’s notes provided. Who will I be writing to? Most of the time, you will be writing to a specialist for further management of the patient’s presenting problems. However, perhaps it is also wise to be prepared to write a letter to a nurse or an allied health professional. It is very important to keep in mind WHO you are writing to and what their ROLE in the patient care is. Do I have to include all the information? No, you do not have to include all the patient’s information. In fact, you shouldn’t because you may exceed the word limit of 200 words. Choose the most relevant and appropriate findings. If possible, write only positive findings. Try to SUMMARISE and write as CONCISELY as you can. Are the address, date, subject line and salutation (e.g. Dear Doctor) included in the word count? No, these sections of the letter do NOT contribute to your word count. The word count begins at the start of your introductory paragraph. However, it is still important to include these elements (address, date, subject line, salutation) because they make your letter LOOK like a letter.