The first thirty seconds decide whether the patient — and the examiner — believe they're with a safe, human doctor. You do five small things here: introduce yourself, learn what to call them, signpost the plan, open the history, and acknowledge why they've come. Each one can be said like a checklist, or like a doctor. Here's the difference, line by line — but first, the actions that come before the words.
Before the words — the WIPE actions
Phrasing wins marks, but it can't rescue a missed action. As you greet the patient, do these — visibly, so the examiner sees them:
Wash your hands or use the gel — visibly, before you sit or touch anything.
Introduce yourself — name and role, warmly (Pattern 01).
Permission — ask before you sit, examine, or proceed ("Is it alright if I sit with you?").
Exposure — explain what you'll need to look at. This one mainly applies to examination stations; in a pure counselling or breaking-bad-news station there's nothing to expose, so don't force it.
Pattern 01
Introduce yourself like a person, not a procedure
What many candidates say"Hello. My name is Doctor Mansour. I am one of the junior doctors. Today I am going to take your history."
becomes
What scores in the room"Hi — I'm Dr Mansour, one of the doctors looking after you today. It's good to meet you."
The first five seconds set the rapport mark. "Looking after you" and "good to meet you" make you a person, not a process. Announcing "I'm going to take your history" narrates the exam to the examiner — the patient doesn't need it, so drop it.
Your turn
You walk in to a 40-year-old man waiting with chest pain. Say your opening line out loud — then reveal one that scores.
"Hi, I'm Dr Mansour, one of the doctors on the team today. It's good to meet you — thanks for waiting."
Warm, named, human. "Thanks for waiting" acknowledges him before a single question.
Pattern 02
Ask what to call them — don't interrogate them
What many candidates say"Can you confirm your full name and date of birth, please."
becomes
What scores in the room"And what would you like me to call you?" / "Is it Mr Okafor — or would you prefer your first name?"
In a PLAB 2 communication station you already have the patient's name from the door, so a formal name-and-date-of-birth check feels artificial and cold — there are no notes or wristband to verify against. Asking what they'd like to be called builds rapport and shows respect in one line. Save the full name + DOB identity check for the stations where it genuinely belongs: prescribing, procedures, and examination.
Your turn
You already know from the card it's a 68-year-old, Margaret Hughes. Open warmly without reading her details back at her.
"And what would you like me to call you? … Margaret — lovely. Thanks for coming in today."
You know her name; you ask anyway, because how she'd like to be addressed is hers to give, not yours to recite.
Pattern 03
Signpost the plan, then ask permission
What many candidates say"I will ask you some questions, then I will examine you."
becomes
What scores in the room"What I'd like to do is ask you a little about what's been going on, then we'll talk through what happens next — is that alright?"
Signposting is a named communication descriptor on the mark sheet, and ending on "is that alright?" hands the patient control. That's two marks in one sentence — structure and shared decision-making.
Your turn
Set out the plan for a 10-minute counselling station and check the patient is happy to proceed.
"I thought we could go through what the diagnosis means, talk about the options, and leave plenty of time for any questions — how does that sound to you?"
"How does that sound to you?" is a question, not a statement. It invites; it doesn't instruct.
Pattern 04
Open the history with an invitation, not an interrogation
What many candidates say"What is your presenting complaint?" / "Why have you come today?"
becomes
What scores in the room"So — tell me what's brought you in today." / "Tell me a bit about what's been happening."
An open invitation gets the patient talking and earns the data-gathering mark. "Why have you come" can land as though they must justify themselves; "tell me" opens the door. The rule: open with an invitation, then go quiet and let them talk.
Your turn
You don't yet know why the patient is here. Get them talking in one line.
"So, tell me — what's been going on?"
Three words of invitation, then stop talking and listen. The pause isn't what's marked — the listening is, and you can't listen while you're still talking.
Pattern 05
Name the concern before you dig into it
What many candidates say"I understand you have abdominal pain. When did it start? Is it sharp or dull?"
becomes
What scores in the room"I gather you've been having some tummy pain — that sounds really uncomfortable. Take me through it from the start."
Acknowledging the concern before the questions picks up the empathy mark and shows you've actually listened. "Tummy" over "abdominal" meets a lay patient in plain English — a real UK-register move. Then one open prompt, not a volley of closed ones.
Your turn
The notes say "headache for 3 days." Acknowledge it, then open it up — without firing off closed questions.
"I hear you've been struggling with headaches for a few days — that can really wear you down. Tell me how it's been for you."
Empathy first ("wear you down"), then an open prompt. The closed questions come later, once you've listened.
Register notes — the things UK grads do without thinking
Contractions are your friend. "I'm," "you've," "we'll," "that's." Full forms — "I am going to," "you have been having" — sound rehearsed and stiff out loud. (In writing AMaC stays formal; spoken to a patient, contract.)
Plain words for lay patients. "Tummy," not "abdomen." "Waterworks," not "micturition." "Bloods," not "a full blood count." "Heart tracing," not "ECG." Match the patient, not the textbook.
Soft openers acknowledge before they ask. "I gather…", "I understand…", "It sounds like…", "I hear…". They tell the patient you were listening.
Tag questions invite, they don't command. "…is that alright?", "…how does that sound?", "…if that's okay with you?" Ending on a question hands control back to the patient — and the examiner hears it.
Where marks quietly bleed in the opening
Launching straight into questions with no greeting — you lose rapport before you've started.
Reciting the ID check like a security guard — safe, but cold, and the examiner notices.
Narrating the exam to the room ("I am now going to take a history") instead of speaking to the patient.
Walking past a visible cue at the door — if they're tearful or clearly in pain, acknowledge it first.
Opening with "Everything you tell me is completely confidential" — it sounds robotic, and it isn't yours to promise: confidentiality has real legal and professional limits (safeguarding, risk to others, notifiable disease, the courts).