Station - Instructions for candidate
You are a final-year medical student on placement in a general practice in Rockingham.
Name/Name, a 74-year-old retired boilermaker from Rockingham, has booked a general practice appointment because of intermittent bright red bleeding from the back passage over several months. The patient believes this is a flare of previously diagnosed haemorrhoids and is asking about treatment. The patient also reports becoming less able to walk uphill.
Your tasks are to:
- Take a focused history of the presenting complaint and relevant background, including medications and allergies.
- Perform a focused abdominal examination, perianal inspection and digital rectal examination. Describe to the examiner what you would like to examine or do, and the relevant findings will be provided to you.
- Request appropriate investigations. Results will be provided by the examiner if appropriately indicated.
- State the most likely diagnosis and two to four differentials, with brief justification.
- Outline your initial management plan, including the key medication considerations, referral and safety-netting.
- Summarise your findings to the examiner using a concise structured handover.
- Please obtain consent before the perianal inspection and digital rectal examination.
- Please verbalise your examination to the examiner; findings will be provided when you request the relevant step.
- You do NOT need to perform any procedure beyond the examination described or write a prescription.
- You must summarise your findings to the examiner before the station ends.
This is a 15-minute station, with 2 minutes of reading time.