For RACP long-case preparation, prioritise bedside assessment, observed presentations and resources that help you organise complex information. The College's long-case teaching is a useful starting point; focused references and independent rehearsal can address specific weaknesses between supervised cases. A long problem list becomes a strong presentation only when the listener can understand your priorities.
This long-case guide is published by iatroX and includes its rehearsal tools alongside bedside teaching and College resources. The comparison treats acquiring findings and presenting them as related but different learning tasks. Product descriptions and resource availability throughout are dated 6 September 2026.
Some candidates need more exposure to physical findings. Others gather relevant information but present every item with equal weight. These are different problems, and buying another broad textbook will not necessarily solve either without a clear plan for using it.
Use the RACP resource collection selectively
The RACP Divisional Clinical Examination resources include long-case presentations, investigation teaching and discussions of preparing through day-to-day practice. Some recordings are older, so use them for their stated educational purpose and check current guidance where clinical recommendations may have changed.
Keep Adult Internal Medicine and Paediatrics and Child Health preparation distinct. A technique for organising a presentation may transfer, but the clinical context, patient interaction and appropriate teaching needs do not become identical.
Begin with the current examination information for your pathway, then select a small part of the resource collection that addresses a difficulty your supervisor has actually observed.
Turn a list into a prioritised account
Consider an original fictional case with several established diagnoses, a recent change in function and a practical barrier to the proposed plan. A flat presentation lists these in the order they were discovered.
A more useful presentation distinguishes the active problem, relevant interacting conditions, unresolved questions and the patient's circumstances. The exact order depends on the case; the exercise is not a universal examination script.
Ask your supervisor to stop you after the opening summary and state what they think the main problem is. If their interpretation differs from yours, examine what your wording emphasised. You may have included the correct facts but given the wrong fact the greatest prominence.
Then present the same case again with a different opening. Comparing those two attempts is often more informative than moving immediately to an entirely new patient.
Choose resources that make priorities visible
| Difficulty | Resource to prioritise | A concrete output |
|---|---|---|
| Missing or uncertain physical findings | Supervised bedside examination | Feedback on technique and findings |
| An unfocused opening presentation | Recorded or observed long-case summary | A clearer statement of the active problems |
| Weak interpretation of investigations | Targeted teaching and worked examples | An explanation connecting results to the case |
| Difficulty justifying a management choice | Supervisor discussion and focused reference | A rationale and relevant alternatives |
| Forgetting the patient's practical context | Patient-centred case review | An account of how context affects the discussion |
Do not let the easiest activity occupy the entire week. If presentations are your main weakness, repeated reading can become a way of avoiding the discomfort of being observed.
Practise defending a plan without becoming defensive
After presenting, invite a colleague to question one priority. Explain why you selected it and what information might lead you to change it. You are practising transparent reasoning, not proving that your first answer must remain correct.
A useful response acknowledges the assumption being tested. "That would change my priority because..." is different from adding more facts while leaving the question unanswered. Keep the case fictional or appropriately de-identified in independent practice.
Record whether the challenge revealed missing knowledge, a poorly stated assumption or difficulty expressing a reasonable interpretation. The next revision activity should follow that diagnosis of the learning problem.
Where iatroX adds independent rehearsal
As published on 6 September 2026, the iatroX simulation announcement includes an RACP Divisional Clinical Examination track. Its clinician-reviewed scenarios, voice and text interaction, feedback and Tutor follow-up provide options for rehearsing case discussion outside scheduled bedside sessions.
Use the platform for the elements it can observe: how you organise an account, explain decisions and respond to information. It does not obtain physical findings on your behalf or demonstrate that you can elicit them accurately. Those remain reasons to preserve supervised clinical teaching.
The Australian exam catalogue also distinguishes adult and paediatric RACP written revision. Select the relevant pathway and use questions to investigate knowledge gaps exposed by your clinical preparation. Do not treat completing the written bank as a proxy for long-case performance.
Make feedback change the next presentation
Choose one feedback point, state the intended adjustment and test it in a subsequent case. For example: "My opening summary did not explain why the recent change mattered; in the next case I will connect the change to the active problem before listing stable background diagnoses."
That is a more actionable record than "improve synthesis". It also gives the next observer something specific to assess. If the change works in a rehearsed case but disappears in a new one, you have identified the next practice need.
Automated feedback can support this process, but disagreements or uncertain clinical interpretations deserve review with a suitable teacher. A platform score is not a replacement for expert observation.
Spend on the missing type of support
As published on 6 September 2026, iatroX's UK reference pricing is £99 a year, paid upfront, equivalent to £8.25 a month billed annually, or £29 a month. The paid subscription includes question banks, Socratic Tutor, the study planner, iatroX Simulations and CPD tools together; simulations and CPD are not separate add-ons. This is a UK reference price, not a currency conversion or a quotation for a different regional checkout.
The September 2026 free offering is separate from the subscription: Ask-iatroX and free question access have no trial expiry or verification gate. Free samples and designated free banks should not be confused with unlimited access to every paid bank or ongoing tutoring. The September 2026 simulation offering also includes one complete simulation free.
Which resource fits your preparation?
Prioritise bedside sessions when you cannot reliably obtain the findings and supervisor discussion when the problem list is poorly prioritised. iatroX can supplement presentation and reasoning practice between those sessions. Select the relevant adult or paediatric written pathway rather than treating broad access as a reason to study both.
Frequently asked questions
How can I shorten a long-case presentation without losing its meaning?
Group findings around the main problems and explain which uncertainty affects the plan. Remove incidental detail before removing the evidence that supports your conclusion.
Can online long-case discussion replace examining patients?
No. Use online rehearsal for organising and defending an interpretation, while retaining bedside teaching for eliciting and interpreting actual findings.
Should adult and paediatric RACP candidates use an identical bank?
Choose the relevant pathway rather than assuming a shared College name means interchangeable preparation. The iatroX Australian catalogue reviewed on 6 September 2026 lists adult and paediatric written preparation separately.