AskMed
AskMed is our pick for PLAB 2 because it checks the clinical content behind each station against NICE and other cited sources. Use it alongside station practice with a partner or a course.
| Role for PLAB 2 | Checking the guidance behind each station topic |
|---|---|
| Answers | Cited to journals, guidelines such as NICE, and drug labels |
| PLAB 2 stations | None: practise stations with a partner, course or simulator |
| Follow-ups | Read together with your previous question and answer |
| Your files | Attach a PDF or image, such as your own notes |
| PLAB 1 bank | 500 questions, 15 topics, an explanation for every option |
| Doses | Never |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Android, web |
What is PLAB 2?
PLAB 2 is the second part of the GMC's PLAB test for doctors who qualified outside the UK, the EEA or Switzerland, and it is a practical clinical exam that the GMC also calls an OSCE (objective structured clinical exam). According to the GMC's PLAB 2 guide, PLAB 2 is made up of 16 scenarios of eight minutes each, set in real-life settings such as a mock consultation or an acute ward, with at least two rest stations and about three hours. Before each scenario you get 1 minute and 30 seconds to move to the next room and read the instructions. Some stations use actors as patients and others use manikins or equipment, and a station can include a prescribing element. Examiners mark each station on three domains: data gathering, technical and assessment skills; clinical management skills; and interpersonal skills. PLAB 2 is held at the GMC's two assessment centre sites in Manchester, and you need a valid PLAB 1 pass to book it.
| Format | OSCE: 16 scenarios, eight minutes each |
|---|---|
| Before each station | 1 minute 30 seconds to move rooms and read the instructions |
| Length | About three hours, with at least two rest stations |
| Patients | Actors, manikins and equipment; some stations include prescribing |
| Marked on | Data gathering, technical and assessment skills; clinical management; interpersonal skills |
| To pass | A total score at or above the overall pass mark, and a minimum number of stations passed |
| Level | Doctors starting the second year of the UK Foundation Programme |
| Where | The GMC's two assessment centre sites in Manchester |
The other options
Four other tools are worth comparing with AskMed for PLAB 2: PLABable, Geeky Medics, Samson Clinical Courses and ChatGPT. PLABable's PLAB 2 material is built around its Gems, which cover OSCE cases, examinations, prescriptions, procedures, SimMan and teaching stations, plus OSCE AI, which lets you practise Gems stations with an AI patient and get instant marking and feedback. Geeky Medics sells a bank of over 1,300 OSCE stations for PLAB 2, each with candidate instructions, a patient script and an examiner checklist, and AI virtual patients you can type or speak to. Samson Clinical Courses is a PLAB 2 academy that teaches in Manchester, where the exam is held, with group practice and mock exams, and it publishes the Samson Handbook of PLAB 2 and Clinical Assessment. ChatGPT is a general AI chatbot whose Voice mode can play a patient out loud, but it has no PLAB 2 material. The table below shows the type of each tool and what it is best for.
| Tool | Type | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| PLABable | PLAB 2 notes (Gems) + AI patient | Station content by type, AI patient practice with marking, and finding a practice partner |
| Geeky Medics | OSCE station bank + AI virtual patients | Scripted stations with examiner checklists to run with a partner |
| Samson Clinical Courses | PLAB 2 academy | Face-to-face teaching and mock exams in Manchester |
| ChatGPT | General AI chatbot | Spoken roleplay of a history or an explanation. It has no PLAB 2 material, so check its clinical content yourself |
How to use AskMed for PLAB 2 stations
AskMed fits into PLAB 2 preparation at three points: before you practise a station topic, after a mock station, and when a station shows a gap in your knowledge. Before you practise, ask AskMed what current NICE guidance says about the topic, such as headache, chest pain or a feverish child, and name the setting, because a GP telephone consultation and an acute ward call for different plans. After a mock, paste the management plan you gave and ask whether it matches current guidance and what it left out. A management answer from AskMed is checked to name every option the guideline recommends, and each claim links to its source, so you can open the guideline itself. When a station shows a gap, read up on it in AskMed or practise the topic in AskMed's 500-question PLAB 1 bank. Say "UK" or "NICE" in your question, because guidelines differ between countries. The table below pairs common PLAB 2 station types with questions to ask AskMed.
| Station type | What to ask AskMed |
|---|---|
| Telephone or GP consultation | "Which headache features need urgent referral, and how does NICE recommend managing migraine in adults?" The GMC's own sample station is a telephone consultation about head pain. |
| Chest pain | "According to NICE, how should a GP manage a patient with suspected acute coronary syndrome?" |
| Acute ward | "How does NICE recommend recognising and managing suspected sepsis in an adult on a hospital ward?" |
| Paediatrics | "Which features in a feverish child under 5 does NICE class as high risk, and what should happen next?" |
| Explaining a diagnosis | "What does NICE recommend telling an adult newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes about lifestyle, monitoring and treatment options?" |
| Prescribing | "Which drug does NICE recommend first for hypertension in a 60-year-old, and why?" AskMed explains the choice; take doses from the BNF. |
| Consent, capacity, confidentiality | Read the GMC's own guidance on these, and practise the ethics questions in AskMed's PLAB 1 bank, which cite the GMC. |
- Give the patient and the setting. Age, pregnancy, kidney function and the setting (primary care, emergency department or ward) all change the plan.
- Paste your own plan. After a mock, type out what you told the examiner and ask what current guidance would add or change. You can also attach your notes as a PDF or an image.
- Use short follow-ups. A follow-up such as "and if she is pregnant?" is read together with your last question and answer, so you can test the variations an examiner might add.
- Open the citation. Before you learn a plan, open the source behind it and check the date and whose guidance it is. More on this in how AskMed answers.
What to look for in PLAB 2 preparation tools
A good PLAB 2 preparation tool should train you to perform a station, not only to know its content. PLAB 2 tests what you do in eight minutes with a patient, an examiner and sometimes a manikin, and the GMC says it is not a test of memorised facts. That gives five things to check: practice spoken out loud with a person who plays the patient and marks you; feedback organised by the GMC's three domains of data gathering, clinical management and interpersonal skills; content that follows current UK guidance, since the GMC expects answers to follow published evidence rather than local arrangements; hands-on practice of examinations and procedures on a manikin, which no app can replace; and a quick way to check the guidance behind a topic. Start with the GMC's own sample OSCE station and the MLA content map, which the GMC says covers all the topics and skills PLAB 2 tests. The list below explains each point and where AskMed fits.
- Spoken practice with a person. A study partner, an academy, PLABable's partner pairing or a Geeky Medics circuit gives you a patient to talk to and an examiner to time you.
- Feedback by domain. Your PLAB 2 results show your mark in each of the GMC's three domains, so practise with checklists that split the score the same way.
- Current UK guidance. PLAB 2 tests UK practice, so a station plan should follow UK guidance such as NICE rather than another country's guideline. AskMed's answers cite NICE among its guideline sources, and the source list labels each source as a guideline, research, a drug label or a reference.
- Hands-on skills. Examinations of the abdomen, chest, heart and joints, and procedures on manikins, need practice with your hands. An academy or a clinical skills session covers this; an app cannot.
- A quick check on knowledge. When a mock exposes a gap, read up on it with cited sources and go back to practice. That is AskMed's job in PLAB 2 preparation.
Questions
Does AskMed have PLAB 2 stations?
No. AskMed has no PLAB 2 station bank, no AI patient and no PLAB 2 mock exam. AskMed's Exam Prep covers PLAB 1, with 500 single-best-answer questions across 15 topics, each with five options, an explanation for every option and one to three sources such as NICE, GOV.UK, the RCOG and the GMC. For PLAB 2, AskMed is the place to check the clinical content of a station: ask what NICE recommends for a topic, paste the plan you gave in a mock and ask what it missed, then open the citation behind each claim to read the guideline itself. Practise the stations themselves out loud and against the clock, with a study partner, an academy, or an OSCE tool such as PLABable's OSCE AI or Geeky Medics' virtual patients. The GMC also publishes a sample OSCE station on its website, which shows what a real PLAB 2 scenario looks like.
How many stations are in PLAB 2?
The GMC describes PLAB 2 as 16 scenarios of eight minutes each, with at least two rest stations and about three hours in all. You get 1 minute and 30 seconds before each scenario to move rooms and read the instructions.
Do I need a PLAB 2 course?
The GMC says you don't need to attend a course to pass PLAB 2, and it doesn't offer or endorse courses. If you take one, the GMC says it is your responsibility to check the course and the people running it.
Can ChatGPT play a patient for PLAB 2 practice?
Yes. ChatGPT's Voice mode holds a spoken conversation on iPhone, Android and the web, so you can give it a scenario and take a history out loud. It has no PLAB 2 material or GMC mark scheme, so check its clinical content against NICE guidance, for example with AskMed's cited answers.
Does AskMed give drug doses?
No. AskMed explains which drug a guideline recommends and why, but never gives doses. For prescribing stations, take doses from the BNF, which the GMC uses for drug names in PLAB 2.
Which devices does it work on?
iPhone, iPad, Android and the web. One account works on all of them, so you can check a topic on your phone between mock stations and read the guideline on a laptop.