ABSTRACT
There are many textbooks on multiple-choice questions (MCQs) in obstetrics and gynaecology. All candidates sitting the MRCOG Part 2 examination will have had the experience of this type of examination from Part 1. The short-answer questions (SAQs) are different and require a completely new approach. The questions are clinical and require logic and structure. Most questions require a matured and well-reasoned approach – a personal rather than a generic one. Although the questions may appear straightforward, candidates fail to provide the correct answers because of their lack of understanding of the key issues within them. It is expected that these questions will be approached from a clinical perspective rather from a theoretical basis. The MCQs test theory, whereas the SAQs and the oral or objective structured clinical examination assess clinical competencies. Here, some guidance is provided on how to approach the SAQs. Always remember that the question is asking what you would do rather than what your consultant, another colleague or the textbook would do. If in doubt, imagine that you are faced with a patient in the clinic, on the wards or in theatre and you have to explain to your consultant how and why you would manage that patient in a particular way. Below are some guiding principles for the short essays.
