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Free PLAB 2 practice OSCE cases

20 high-yield stations to run with a study partner. Every case has candidate instructions, an actor script, a bespoke examiner mark sheet, an expanded station-specific marking standard, the GMC feedback statements with case-specific examples, examiner points of fact with guideline links, and a reflection form — and every case is coded to a station family and to the MLA areas of clinical practice.

Reviewed and kept current

Last editorial review: 26 September 2026 · Next scheduled refresh: March 2027.

Go to the cases How the cases are marked

Before you start

Run every case the same way

Three roles

Candidate, actor, examiner. Two people? The actor also marks. Manikin and acute-care stations (P2-14, P2-16) run best with three.

Candidate reads only the instructions

Everything else on a case page is folded away in seven numbered sections. The actor opens section 1 — the script, which ends with any examination findings to give the candidate, only if they are asked for (read out by the examiner, if there is one); the examiner opens section 2 (the mark sheet) and, for the debrief, sections 3 to 5. Candidates: do not unfold anything until you have finished.

Exam timing

1 min 30 s reading · start the clock · practice bell at 6:00 · stop at 8:00, mid-sentence if necessary. The GMC does not promise a two-minute warning in the real examination, so candidates should also practise some stations without the bell.

Mark, feed back, reflect

1–4 in each domain using the key facts on the mark sheet, then the GMC feedback statements that applied — each case gives its own examples. Two minutes of feedback, then the candidate completes the reflection form; a copy is emailed to them.

The library

All 20 practice cases

Case	Station	Station family	MLA areas of clinical practice	Format
P2-01	Breaking bad news: abnormal chest X-ray	B · Explanation, counselling and breaking bad news	Cancer · Respiratory · Clinical imaging	Face-to-face · simulated patient
P2-02	Telephone consultation: head pain	A · History, diagnosis and management	Neurosciences · General practice and primary healthcare	Telephone · simulated patient
P2-03	Low mood: urgent same-day appointment	A · History, diagnosis and management	Mental health · Acute and emergency	Face-to-face · simulated patient
P2-04	ED follow-up: adult safeguarding and domestic abuse	E · Acute care, ethics and safeguarding	General practice and primary healthcare · Child health · Acute and emergency	Face-to-face · simulated patient
P2-05	Positive swab result: partner notification	B · Explanation, counselling and breaking bad news	Sexual health · Infection	Face-to-face · simulated patient
P2-06	Telephone: bruising in a three-year-old	E · Acute care, ethics and safeguarding	Child health · Acute and emergency · Clinical haematology	Telephone · simulated parent
P2-07	Headache at 32 weeks pregnant	A · History, diagnosis and management	Obstetrics and gynaecology · Acute and emergency	Face-to-face · simulated patient
P2-08	The angry patient with abdominal pain	E · Acute care, ethics and safeguarding	Gastrointestinal (GI) · General practice and primary healthcare	Face-to-face · simulated patient
P2-09	Explaining a liver scan result	B · Explanation, counselling and breaking bad news	Gastrointestinal (GI) · Clinical imaging	Face-to-face · simulated patient
P2-10	Collapse at home: the day after	A · History, diagnosis and management	Neurosciences	Face-to-face · simulated patient
P2-11	Low mood six weeks after childbirth	A · History, diagnosis and management	Mental health · Obstetrics and gynaecology	Face-to-face · simulated patient
P2-12	Exertional chest pain	A · History, diagnosis and management	Cardiovascular	Face-to-face · simulated patient
P2-13	Declining metformin: a counselling station	B · Explanation, counselling and breaking bad news	Endocrine, diabetes and metabolic · General practice and primary healthcare	Face-to-face · simulated patient
P2-14	Bleeding after sex: speculum and cervical sample	D · Practical procedures and prescribing	Obstetrics and gynaecology · Sexual health · Cancer	Pelvic manikin · simulated patient
P2-15	Facial weakness: cranial nerve examination	C · Clinical examination	Neurosciences · Ear, nose and throat · Ophthalmology	Face-to-face · examination of a simulated patient
P2-16	Acutely unwell minutes after an antibiotic	E · Acute care, ethics and safeguarding	Acute and emergency	Manikin or simulator · with a ward nurse
P2-17	COPD review: “the inhaler’s stopped working”	A · History, diagnosis and management	Respiratory · General practice and primary healthcare	Face-to-face · simulated patient
P2-18	Tired all the time	A · History, diagnosis and management	General practice and primary healthcare · Respiratory	Face-to-face · simulated patient
P2-19	Power of attorney: “do we have to tell her?”	E · Acute care, ethics and safeguarding	Medicine of the older adult · Palliative and end of life care	Face-to-face · simulated relative
P2-20	Interpreting spirometry and other results	D · Practical procedures and prescribing	Respiratory	Face-to-face · simulated patient · results sheet

Case titles describe the presenting situation, not the diagnosis, wherever the real station would hide it. The first area listed, in bold, is the case’s primary area of clinical practice.

Concept table

The same cases by MLA presentation, condition, body system and interpersonal skill

The library table above classifies each station by the setting of care (Domain 1 of the MLA content map). This second table classifies the same stations by what the patient presents with (Domain 5), the condition behind it (Domain 6), the body system the GMC assigns that condition to (Appendix A of the content map, September 2026 update) and the interpersonal skill the station mainly tests — the skill in bold — taken from the list of interactions in the GMC’s PLAB 2 guide. Together the two tables show where the library is strong and where the next stations should go.

Case	MLA patient presentation (Domain 5)	MLA condition (Domain 6)	MLA body system (Appendix A)	Interpersonal skill (GMC PLAB 2 guide)
P2-01	Cough · Haemoptysis · Weight loss	Lung cancer	Lungs, pleura and airways	Breaking bad news · Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment · Dealing with anxious patients or relatives
P2-02	Headache · Nausea · Vision change/ loss (acute and gradual)	Primary headache disorders (including migraine, cluster headache, tension headache)	Brain and spinal cord	Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment · Clear written instructions (e.g. prescribing) · Involving the patient in decision-making
P2-03	Altered mood · Suicidal thoughts · Self-harm · Sleep problems · Substance misuse	Depression · Self-harm	Mental health	Involving the patient in decision-making · Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment · Dealing with anxious patients or relatives
P2-04	Domestic abuse · Bruising · Soft tissue injury · Child abuse and neglect	None — professional-capability station	None	Involving the patient in decision-making · Dealing with anxious patients or relatives · Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment
P2-05	Vaginal discharge · Urinary symptoms	Gonorrhoea · Pelvic inflammatory disease	Infections · Gynaecological tract	Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment · Lifestyle, health promotion or risk-factor advice · Involving the patient in decision-making
P2-06	Bruising · Child abuse and neglect · Worried parent · Domestic abuse	Non-accidental injury · Idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) · Leukaemia	Other knowledge · Blood and lymph	Communicating with relatives · Dealing with anxious patients or relatives · Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment
P2-07	Headache · High blood pressure · Vision change/ loss (acute and gradual) · Peripheral oedema and ankle swelling · Reduced/ change in foetal movements	Hypertension in pregnancy (including gestational hypertension, pre-eclampsia, eclampsia)	Pregnancy and the puerperium	Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment · Dealing with anxious patients or relatives · Involving the patient in decision-making
P2-08	Abdominal pain (acute and chronic) · Weight loss · Substance misuse	Peptic ulcer disease and gastritis · Gastric cancer	Gastrointestinal tract	Dealing with anxious patients or relatives · Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment · Lifestyle, health promotion or risk-factor advice
P2-09	Fatigue · Abdominal distension	Chronic liver disease (including decompensation and cirrhosis of the liver) · Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) · Alcohol related liver disease	Liver, pancreas, biliary system	Breaking bad news · Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment · Lifestyle, health promotion or risk-factor advice
P2-10	Fits/seizures · Blackouts and faints · Fitness to drive	Epilepsy · Syncope (including vasovagal, cardiac)	Brain and spinal cord · Heart and vasculature	Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment · Lifestyle, health promotion or risk-factor advice · Dealing with anxious patients or relatives
P2-11	Mental health problems in pregnancy or postpartum · Altered mood · Sleep problems · Suicidal thoughts	Postpartum depression · Postpartum psychosis	Mental health	Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment · Involving the patient in decision-making · Dealing with anxious patients or relatives
P2-12	Chest pain · Fitness to drive	Ischaemic heart disease (including stable angina) · Acute coronary syndromes	Heart and vasculature	Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment · Lifestyle, health promotion or risk-factor advice · Involving the patient in decision-making
P2-13	Wellbeing checks · Fatigue	Diabetes mellitus · Obesity	Endocrine and metabolic · Multi-system diseases	Involving the patient in decision-making · Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment · Lifestyle, health promotion or risk-factor advice
P2-14	Abnormal vaginal bleeding	Cervical screening (human papilloma virus) · Cervical cancer · Chlamydia	Gynaecological tract · Infections	Informed consent for an invasive procedure / post-mortem · Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment · Dealing with anxious patients or relatives
P2-15	Facial weakness · Eye pain/ discomfort	Bell palsy · Stroke · Varicella zoster virus	Peripheral nervous system and neuromuscular junction · Brain and spinal cord · Infections	Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment · Dealing with anxious patients or relatives · Informed consent for an invasive procedure / post-mortem
P2-16	Anaphylaxis · Shock · Wheeze · Deteriorating patient · Allergy/ allergic reaction	Anaphylaxis · Shock · Adverse drug effects	Multi-system diseases · Heart and vasculature · Drugs and drug effects	Communicating with health care professionals · Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment · Dealing with anxious patients or relatives
P2-17	Breathlessness · Cough · Wheeze	Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)	Lungs, pleura and airways	Lifestyle, health promotion or risk-factor advice · Involving the patient in decision-making · Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment
P2-18	Fatigue · Sleep problems · Snoring · Weight gain · Fitness to drive	Obstructive sleep apnoea · Obesity	Lungs, pleura and airways · Multi-system diseases	Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment · Lifestyle, health promotion or risk-factor advice · Dealing with anxious patients or relatives
P2-19	Mental capacity concerns · End of life care/ symptoms of terminal illness · Memory loss · Death and dying	Dementias (including Alzheimer dementia, Lewy-Body dementia, frontotemporal dementia, vascular dementia) · Metastatic cancer	Brain and spinal cord · Multi-system diseases	Communicating with relatives · Dealing with anxious patients or relatives · Involving the patient in decision-making
P2-20	Breathlessness · Cough · Wheeze	Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)	Lungs, pleura and airways	Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment · Involving the patient in decision-making · Dealing with anxious patients or relatives

Body systems follow the condition: each condition sits in exactly one Appendix A system, so a station appears under a system only when its tagged condition does. Stations without a condition (safeguarding, ethics and law) are classified by presentation and interpersonal skill alone. Where a station tests anger or distress it is classified under the GMC’s heading “dealing with anxious patients or relatives”.

Coverage map

Cases by MLA area of clinical practice

The MLA content map lists 24 areas of clinical practice. The library currently touches 19 of 24. Empty rows show the areas a future case would fill.

How cases are tagged. Each case has one primary area — shown in bold — the specialty or body system whose knowledge it mainly tests, and up to two further areas that are genuinely examined in its mark scheme, so one station can appear more than once. Almost every PLAB 2 scenario is set in a GP surgery or an emergency department, so the setting alone does not earn a tag: “General practice and primary healthcare” is kept for stations whose task is distinctively primary care — telephone consulting, follow-up and safeguarding in the practice, the community pathway for an undifferentiated symptom, or a long-term condition review.

Area of clinical practice (MLA content map, Domain 1)	Practice cases	Count
Acute and emergency	P2-03 · P2-04 · P2-06 · P2-07 · P2-16	5
Cancer	P2-01 · P2-14	2
Cardiovascular	P2-12	1
Child health	P2-04 · P2-06	2
Clinical haematology	P2-06	1
Clinical imaging	P2-01 · P2-09	2
Dermatology	No case yet	0
Ear, nose and throat	P2-15	1
Endocrine, diabetes and metabolic	P2-13	1
Gastrointestinal (GI)	P2-08 · P2-09	2
General practice and primary healthcare	P2-02 · P2-04 · P2-08 · P2-13 · P2-17 · P2-18	6
Infection	P2-05	1
Medicine of the older adult	P2-19	1
Mental health	P2-03 · P2-11	2
Musculoskeletal	No case yet	0
Neurosciences	P2-02 · P2-10 · P2-15	3
Obstetrics and gynaecology	P2-07 · P2-11 · P2-14	3
Ophthalmology	P2-15	1
Palliative and end of life care	P2-19	1
Perioperative medicine and anaesthesia	No case yet	0
Renal and urology	No case yet	0
Respiratory	P2-01 · P2-17 · P2-18 · P2-20	4
Sexual health	P2-05 · P2-14	2
Surgery	No case yet	0

Cases by station family

The same library sorted by the five station families described on the exam structure page — useful if one style of station is your weak point.

Station family	Practice cases	Count
A · History, diagnosis and management	P2-02 Telephone consultation: head pain · P2-03 Low mood: urgent same-day appointment · P2-07 Headache at 32 weeks pregnant · P2-10 Collapse at home: the day after · P2-11 Low mood six weeks after childbirth · P2-12 Exertional chest pain · P2-17 COPD review: “the inhaler’s stopped working” · P2-18 Tired all the time	8
B · Explanation, counselling and breaking bad news	P2-01 Breaking bad news: abnormal chest X-ray · P2-05 Positive swab result: partner notification · P2-09 Explaining a liver scan result · P2-13 Declining metformin: a counselling station	4
C · Clinical examination	P2-15 Facial weakness: cranial nerve examination	1
D · Practical procedures and prescribing	P2-14 Bleeding after sex: speculum and cervical sample · P2-20 Interpreting spirometry and other results	2
E · Acute care, ethics and safeguarding	P2-04 ED follow-up: adult safeguarding and domestic abuse · P2-06 Telephone: bruising in a three-year-old · P2-08 The angry patient with abdominal pain · P2-16 Acutely unwell minutes after an antibiotic · P2-19 Power of attorney: “do we have to tell her?”	5

Where the next cases should go

Gap analysis from the two tables

Across the 20 cases the library touches 45 of 220 MLA patient presentations, 36 of 429 conditions, 15 of 24 body systems, 19 of 24 areas of clinical practice and 9 of 10 interpersonal skills. Formats: Face-to-face 16 · Telephone 2 · Pelvic manikin 1 · Manikin or simulator 1. The tables below show the gaps; the rules underneath say how a new case is chosen to close them.

Coverage by body system (Appendix A of the content map)

Body system	Practice cases	Count
Blood and lymph	P2-06	1
Skin and soft tissue	No case yet	0
Eye	No case yet	0
Endocrine and metabolic	P2-13	1
Heart and vasculature	P2-10 · P2-12 · P2-16	3
Lungs, pleura and airways	P2-01 · P2-17 · P2-18 · P2-20	4
Gastrointestinal tract	P2-08	1
Liver, pancreas, biliary system	P2-09	1
Genetic and congenital	No case yet	0
Gynaecological tract	P2-05 · P2-14	2
Pregnancy and the puerperium	P2-07	1
Male genitourinary tract	No case yet	0
Brain and spinal cord	P2-02 · P2-10 · P2-15 · P2-19	4
Peripheral nervous system and neuromuscular junction	P2-15	1
Mental health	P2-03 · P2-11	2
Ear, nose and throat	No case yet	0
Child health	No case yet	0
Infections	P2-05 · P2-14 · P2-15	3
Breast	No case yet	0
Kidneys and urinary tract	No case yet	0
Musculoskeletal	No case yet	0
Drugs and drug effects	P2-16	1
Multi-system diseases	P2-13 · P2-16 · P2-18 · P2-19	4
Other knowledge	P2-06	1

Coverage by interpersonal skill (the GMC’s list of interactions)

Bold = the skill the station mainly tests (primary); plain = also tested.

Interpersonal skill	Practice cases	Count
Explaining diagnosis, investigation and treatment	P2-02 · P2-05 · P2-07 · P2-10 · P2-11 · P2-12 · P2-15 · P2-18 · P2-20 · P2-01 · P2-03 · P2-04 · P2-06 · P2-08 · P2-09 · P2-13 · P2-14 · P2-16 · P2-17	9 primary · 10 secondary
Involving the patient in decision-making	P2-03 · P2-04 · P2-13 · P2-02 · P2-05 · P2-07 · P2-11 · P2-12 · P2-17 · P2-19 · P2-20	3 primary · 8 secondary
Communicating with relatives	P2-06 · P2-19	2 primary · 0 secondary
Communicating with health care professionals	P2-16	1 primary · 0 secondary
Breaking bad news	P2-01 · P2-09	2 primary · 0 secondary
Clear written instructions (e.g. prescribing)	P2-02	0 primary · 1 secondary
Informed consent for an invasive procedure / post-mortem	P2-14 · P2-15	1 primary · 1 secondary
Dealing with anxious patients or relatives	P2-08 · P2-01 · P2-03 · P2-04 · P2-06 · P2-07 · P2-10 · P2-11 · P2-14 · P2-15 · P2-16 · P2-18 · P2-19 · P2-20	1 primary · 13 secondary
Instructions on discharge from hospital	No case yet	0 primary · 0 secondary
Lifestyle, health promotion or risk-factor advice	P2-17 · P2-05 · P2-08 · P2-09 · P2-10 · P2-12 · P2-13 · P2-18	1 primary · 7 secondary

Under-represented at present

→

Areas of clinical practice with no case: Dermatology · Musculoskeletal · Perioperative medicine and anaesthesia · Renal and urology · Surgery.

→

Areas that appear only as a secondary tag (no station tests them as its main subject): Clinical haematology · Clinical imaging · Ear, nose and throat · Infection · Ophthalmology · Palliative and end of life care.

→

Body systems with no case: Skin and soft tissue · Eye · Genetic and congenital · Male genitourinary tract · Ear, nose and throat · Child health · Breast · Kidneys and urinary tract · Musculoskeletal.

→

Interpersonal skills with one case or none: Communicating with health care professionals (1) · Clear written instructions (e.g. prescribing) (1) · Instructions on discharge from hospital (0). Explaining a diagnosis, investigation or treatment and dealing with an anxious or distressed patient are already well served.

→

Station families below target (target for a 30-case library — A 8 · B 6 · C 3 · D 3 · E 4): B · Explanation, counselling and breaking bad news (4 of a target 6) · C · Clinical examination (1 of a target 3) · D · Practical procedures and prescribing (2 of a target 3).

→

Formats: most stations are face-to-face with a simulated patient. Telephone, relative or carer, colleague, manikin or simulator and written (prescribing) formats each need more stations.

How the next case is chosen

✓

Rule 1 — fill a hole first. A new case must give at least one of the following its first station: an area of clinical practice with no case, a body system with no case, or an interpersonal skill with no case.

✓

Rule 2 — pay for the station twice. It must also strengthen a second dimension: an under-represented interpersonal skill (one case or none), a station family below its target, or a format other than face-to-face with a simulated patient.

✓

Rule 3 — tag it the same way. One primary area of clinical practice (the specialty or body system mainly tested — the setting alone does not earn a tag); one to five presentations and up to three conditions in the exact wording of the September 2026 content map; the body system follows the condition automatically; one primary interpersonal skill, up to two more only if the mark scheme rewards them.

✓

Rule 4 — build it the same way. Every new station uses the same seven folded sections, the same three-domain mark sheet with the 1–4 domain score, the safety-net and follow-up line, the ten GMC feedback statements with case-specific examples, and an independent fact-check against the live guideline before it is published.

✓

Rule 5 — keep the presenting problem common. Presentations are chosen from those an FY2 meets every week; rare conditions appear only as the red-flag differential a common presentation must exclude.

Unseen mock stations written against these gaps are used in the live classes of Success in PLAB OSCE and are not listed here; they are added to the library only once they have been used in class.

Independence & scope. Independent, formative training material from MD Acumen Ltd. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or delivered on behalf of the General Medical Council. The GMC does not publish its station mark sheets: every mark scheme and descriptor on these pages is an Acumen training tool calibrated to the GMC's published marking domains, feedback statements and the MLA content map. Practice scores are not a prediction of examination performance. Clinical content reflects UK guidance at the date of editorial review — always check the current guideline. All patients are fictional. This course never provides, and will never ask you to share, real GMC exam content — full regulatory statement: Legal & Regulatory.

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