Month: October 2022

Are you getting ready to take your mock exams for the Prescribing Safety Assessment in November? 

Although they might not be the real thing, mock exams can be super helpful in familiarising you with the time pressures of the exam as well as highlighting any sections that take you longer than you imagined or weak spots in your knowledge. It’s worth taking your best shot when it comes to your mock exams – the better you do, the more confident you’ll feel going into the real PSA exam. 

So how can you set yourself up for success? 

 

Get to know the PSA exam format inside out

To get really familiar with what’s expected of you and what you’ll encounter in the PSA exam, complete our free PSA Prep eLearning sessions online and get to know: 

• The exam format and layout of each question
• How to answer the questions
• Common challenges, like the time pressure and exam calculations

We’ve given you 1 session dedicated to each of the 8 sections of the PSA exam, as well as an introductory session. Get instant access to these 9 free PSA Prep sessions today – all you have to do is set up a free account! 

 

Make time to practise

Once you know what to expect in the exam and you’ve familiarised yourself with MedicinesComplete and the British National Formulary (BNF), both available to you on exam day (depending on your location), you’ll want to get practising. 

If you’re already registered for your final PSA exam, you’ll be able to access the official practice papers by logging into your account. If you haven’t yet, don’t panic! We’ve created an additional 3 practice papers to help you prep. Each paper is laid out just like the final exam, with automated marking and detailed feedback on every question, so you know where you’re going wrong and how to improve. 

 

Prescribing is arguably the greatest challenge for any doctor. They must choose the right medicine, the right dose, the right route, the right frequency and the right duration. They need to take into account the infinite variation in the patients they treat, because of age, other medicines and diseases. They also have to be able to counsel their patient about the medicine, monitor the effects of the treatment and interpret data relating to their treatment. 

Yet there is currently a significant error rate in prescribing in hospitals (9% according to a GMC-sponsored study). That means nearly 1 in 10 medicines are being prescribed inappropriately. 

Many of these errors are made by relatively junior doctors. These errors not only harm patients but also complicate care, prolong hospital stay and cost a lot of money. 

The Prescribing Safety Assessment was introduced to help tackle this issue. 

 

What does the PSA Exam test? 

The aim of the Prescribing Safety Assessment is to test core prescribing competencies as outlined in the GMC’s Outcomes for graduates, to ensure that Foundation doctors are confident and competent prescribers. 

The exam tests 8 distinct areas of prescribing across a range of clinical contexts: prescribing; prescription review; planning management; providing information about medicines; calculation skills; adverse drug reactions; drug monitoring; and data interpretation.

 

When do students take the PSA Exam? 

At UK medical schools, final year undergraduate students must take and pass the Prescribing Safety Assessment in order to complete their medical degree. At other medical schools, the PSA may not be required for completing a medical degree. However, any doctors working in the UK need to pass the PSA before the end of their Foundation (F1) year. 

 

Read more about the practice papers and free eLearning sessions we offer to PSA exam candidates here.