Top exercise tips

Use any preparation time to plan your approach
Read the information given and make some notes. These will help you get back on track of what you wanted to cover if you find yourself losing your way.

Figure out what your discussion objectives are
Your task won’t just be to have a nice chat, there will be something you need to achieve, whether it is to propose a solution, formulate a plan, understand different perspectives, establish your expectations or make improvements. What you need to accomplish will be apparent in any instructions you are given, so read it carefully and stay focused.

You may have an idea of your own agenda but don’t forget other people usually have their own as well
Be prepared to react flexibly and think on your feet in response to the plans, proposals and opinions of others.

Make an effort to gather information from the other people in the interaction.
They will know things that you don’t and unless you ask questions you will never find out. This information can be crucial to you progressing the interaction effectively.

There will be certain questions to see how you react
So listen carefully. If you ignore certain points or fail to respond you may miss out on getting marks in that area. An example of this is someone from the panel asking your opinion on something which you suspect isn’t good practice or is unethical i.e. fails to protect confidentiality or support a patient’s wishes. If you don’t respond to this positively you are missing your chance of demonstrating your integrity and willingness to stand up to unethical behaviour.

If you aren’t directed where to sit try to position yourself so the assessors can see your face
It may be tempting to try and hide away from them but they need to hear what you are saying and this is easier if you are facing towards them.

Although it seems daunting having assessors in the room you will quickly forget they are there as you get drawn into the discussion.
This probably doesn’t sound plausible but most candidates agree that this is true.

Don’t worry or think that you will be put in a situation where you will be completely out of your depth.
There is no value to an organisation to do this. They need to gently push you out of your comfort zone by testing how you respond to relevant, but challenging situations

Get some practice of these sorts of exercises and get a sense of what sort of topics might be covered. You will feel much more confidence if you feel prepared.