| Interlocutor Role Play Card. Setting: Hospital Accident and Emergency Department |
| Patient: You have just fallen down the stairs at home and think you have broken one of your toes. It is black, swollen, and at a strange angle. You cannot put weight on it or wear a shoe. You have come to the hospital for treatment. The emergency department is very busy. TASK Tell the nurse that you fell down the stairs and heard and felt your toe crack. You cannot bear weight or stand on it and are unable to wear a shoe. Ask whether it is broken. Ask for an X-ray as you have been waiting for a long time. Reluctantly agree to the standard treatment and ask how quickly it will heal. Ask what to do if you still have pain after a few weeks. |
| Candidate Role Play Card Setting: Hospital Accident and Emergency Department |
| Nurse: Your patient has come to the emergency department because he/she thinks he/she has broken a toe. It is a very busy weekend night, and the patient has been waiting for some time. TASK Find out what happened to the patient’s foot and their mobility/pain. Explain that you do not know whether it is broken but the procedure is the same for a badly hurt or broken toe (dress and tape it to the next toe). Explain that an X-ray would mean a very long wait and have no bearing on the treatment. The hospital is busy with emergencies tonight. Tell the patient that it usually takes about 6 weeks to heal if cared for properly. Provide information about caring for the toe (ice pack every 20 minutes for the first few days, elevate the foot above heart level to reduce swelling and pain, try to rest it). Reassure the patient that painkillers like ibuprofen and paracetamol usually work but to contact their GP if there is no improvement after 2-3 weeks. |