MCCQE Part I case studies
MCCQE Part I · Put your knowledge to work in context.
The Medical Council of Canada (MCC) describes itself as an organization that ensures a standard of safe care for patients across Canada through the assessment of physicians and validation of credentials. According to the MCC, close to 50,000 students, graduates, and physicians engage with it every year as part of their pathway towards the practice of medicine in Canada. The MCCQE Part I case studies are 5 cases and about 2,647 words.
1The Febrile Infant in a Centre Without Pediatric Inpatient Beds
You are the sole physician on overnight in a 40-bed community hospital four hours by road from the nearest tertiary pediatric centre; roads are currently passable but a winter storm warning is in effect for the next six hours. A 4-week-old ex-term male is brought in by his parents with a temperature of 38.4°C rectally at home, measured 90 minutes ago.
644 words, about 3 min2The Patient Who Refuses the Transfer You Think She Needs
A 58-year-old woman presents to a small urgent care clinic where you are covering for a colleague. She has 3 days of progressive right-sided weakness, slurred speech, and a new facial droop noticed by her daughter this morning.
576 words, about 3 min3The Handover That Lost the Allergic Reaction
You are the resident on a busy internal medicine ward at 07:45. Overnight, a 72-year-old man with community-acquired pneumonia was started on IV ceftriaxone.
453 words, about 2 min4The Emergency Department That Cannot See Everyone
You are the physician lead for a 12-bed emergency department in a rural hospital. Tonight there are 3 nurses for 12 beds (usual staffing is 5), one physician (you), and a waiting room of 19 patients.
490 words, about 2 min5The Resident Who Is Not Coping
You are the senior resident on a surgical service. A junior resident, 6 weeks into a 12-week rotation, has been arriving late three times this week, has twice missed a post-operative check, and last night was found crying in the call room at 02:00 after a difficult death on the ward.
484 words, about 2 min