Table Of ContentPreparing to Pass
the FRCA
Preparing to Pass the FRCA
Strategies for exam success
Dr Caroline Whymark MB ChB FRCA
Consultant Anaesthetist
University Hospital Crosshouse
Kilmarnock
Scotland, UK
1
1
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Preface
I first became aware that the pass rate in FRCA exams was below the national average in my
region, the West of Scotland, in 2009. I began to think of why this may be and how it could be
improved. From my experience in teaching and training, I knew that exam candidates were highly
intelligent professionals, often very good at their job, with a past history of exam and academic
success—yet many could not pass the FRCA.
Success in the FRCA exams is not only related to knowledge of anaesthesia and the exam syl-
labus. In addition, a variety of skills are required, including many life skills such as prioritization,
delegation, self-motivation, and stress management. The attitude of individuals and their depart-
ments towards exams has a significant bearing on the outcome of exam sittings, to the extent
that some would say that the FRCA is predominately a test of one’s life management skills rather
than the sum total of one’s knowledge.
Management of the entire process of taking exams is not widely taught, yet the ability to do
this alongside a demanding professional role and important commitments outwith the hospital is
integral to exam success. I developed a regional course to address this issue and began deliver-
ing it in January 2011. The focus is not on teaching knowledge per se but centres, instead, upon
preparing the candidate to present those parts of their knowledge specifically asked for, in the
format required by each element of the exam, and to facilitate real-time, repeated practice of
doing so.
The regional course forms the basis of this book, and both emphasize all that must be done to
ensure that an intelligent doctor who has studied the syllabus can ultimately pass the FRCA.
Caroline Whymark, 2015
Disclaimer
The advice and opinions expressed in this book are my own and are based on the experience I
have gained in this field over a decade of helping anaesthetists in training prepare for exams. Of
note, I am not an examiner for the Royal College of Anaesthetists and have no input into the
development of any element of the FRCA. Indeed if this was the case, a conflict of roles would
have precluded development of both the course and a book of this nature.
The content of this book does not reflect the views of the Royal College of Anaesthetists nor
has it been endorsed by them. However, much of the information contained within this guide is
available on their website (http://www.rcoa.ac.uk), including the curriculum to which the exams
and this book relate.
C.W.
Contents
PART 1 THE ESSENTIALS 1
1 Introduction to adult learning and postgraduate
exams 3
2 Motivation 6
3 Time management 12
4 Study skills 18
5 Sort your surroundings 24
PART 2 THE PRIMARY FRCA 29
6 The Multiple Choice Question (MCQ) and Single Best
Answer (SBA) paper 31
7 The Objective Structured Clinical Exam (OSCE)
and Structured Oral Exams (SOEs) 39
PART 3 THE FINAL FRCA 45
8 The MCQ/SBAs paper 47
9 The Short Answer Question (SAQ) paper 52
10 The Structured Oral Exams (SOEs) 69
11 Summary 74
Index 77
