ABSTRACT
Doctors must communicate effectively with patients, relatives, colleagues and other professionals from an entire spectrum of socio-economic and cultural backgrounds. This requires skill in verbal, non-verbal, written and telephone etiquette to quickly establish an appropriate and productive rapport to convey and receive information in a structured and comprehensive manner. Assessment of communication skills is a major feature of the Membership of the Royal College of Surgeons (MRCS) objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) and should not be underestimated. Good communication skills are often second nature to caring, dynamic and articulate doctors, however, as with any exam there are effective techniques to maximise success in such cases and vignettes. Communication skills OSCE stations are identical in length to the other stations and may be manned or unmanned. The unmanned stations are usually written tasks such as writing a referral letter using a patient's medical note.
