OET SPEAKING INTRODUCTIONS IN DIFFERENT SETTING

Introducing yourself to your patient is very important in OET speaking roleplay. Mostly the interlocutor will ask you to begin the conversation during the speaking exam of the OET. Therefore, it is vital how you introduce yourself to the given OET speaking scenario appropriately and confidently.

As there are no counter questions to be asked and also you are not addressing any question,  it is easy to score marks here, if you are well prepared. Yes, there are marks in OET speaking just for introducing yourself to your patient. With guidance from Mihiraa, you can make sure you don’t lose these easy points. This will also leave the markers with a good first impression from the very beginning.

The key to the introduction is not considering the SETTING of the conversation. It is the scenario that determines the introduction or the start of the conversation.  Whether it is a Community Health Centre / Community Clinic, hospital, hospital ward, emergency department, or home visit, the patient you come across may or may not be known to you. OET can bring any scenario to any of these settings. Let’s look at the best, easy, and appropriate introduction phrases with examples for a better understanding.

Note: Let us assume your name is Mihira

Scenario 1

Unknown patient  and setting Community Health Centre/ Community Clinic

In a Community Health Centre / Community Clinic setting, mostly you may assume you have not met the patient before.

1. “Hi, my name is Mihira and I am the community nurse here today. May I know, what brings you here today?

(How may I help you? / What can I do for you today? / “How can I help you?” / “What seems to be the problem today?)

2. Hi, Good morning. My name is Mihira and I am one of the community nurses working here. How may I help you?
   (What can I do for you today? / “How can I help you?” / “What brings you here today?” / “What seems to be the problem today?)
3. Good Morning, My name is Mihira, and I am your nurse today. Before we start, can I check your name please?”
4. Hello, I’m Mihira, I am one of the registered nurses working here. Firstly, can I check how you would prefer to be called, please?

Unknown patient and setting hospital ward

1. Hi, my name is Mihira and I am the nurse attending you here today. How may I help you?
   (What can I do for you today? / “How can I help you?” / “What brings you here today?” / “What seems to be the problem today?)
2. Hi, Good morning. My name is Mihira and I am one of the nurses working in the hospital. May I know your full name for the record, please?
   (“How can I help you?” / “What brings you here today?” / “What seems to be the problem today/ What can I do for you today?
3. Good Morning, I am a registered nurse, Mihira, looking after you today. Before we proceed further, can I have your name, please?”
4. Hello, I’m Mihira, one of the nurses on duty. How may I address you?”

Unknown patient and setting emergency department

1. Hi, my name is Mihira and I’ll be the nurse looking after you. How may I help you?
   ( What can I do for you today? / “How can I help you?” / “What brings you here today?” / “What seems to be the problem today?
2. Hi, Good morning. My name is Mihira and I am one of the nurses working in the emergency department. May I know, what brings you here today?
   (What can I do for you today? / “How can I help you?” / “What seems to be the problem today?
3. Good Morning, My name is Mihira. I am your nurse today. Before proceeding further, may I know your name, please?
4. Hello, I’m Mihira . I am one of the nurses in the department. Can I have your name for the record, please?

Unknown patient and setting home visit

In this setting, you know the role and purpose of the visit. 

1. Hi, my name is Mihira and I am the nurse from the hospital. Today I’m here to discuss/talk about/show you how to….. 
2. Hi, Good morning. My name is Mihira and I am one of the nurses working in the hospital. I’m here to discuss/talk about/show you how to….. 
3. Good Morning, My name is Mihira, and I am your nurse from the hospital. How are you?”
4. Hello, I’m Mihira, I am one of the nurses working in the hospital. I am here today to check/ discuss/talk about/show you how to…..  ?”

known patient and setting Community Health Centre/ Community Clinic

1. Hi, Good morning Harry. I am your nurse Mihira  here. How are you?
2. Hello, Harry. I am Mihira, I will be your nurse in the community health center. How are you?
3. Hi, I am Mihira. I will be your nurse here today. How are you, Harry?
4. Hi Good morning. My name is Mihira and I will be attending you today. How are you, Harry? 

known patient and setting hospital ward

1. Hi, Good morning Harry. I am your nurse Mihira  here. How are you?
2. Hello, Harry. I am Mihira, I will be your ward nurse in the hospital today. How are you?
3. Hi, I am Mihira. I will be your nurse here today. How are you, Harry?
4. Hi Good morning. My name is Mihira and I will be the nurse attending you today. How are you, Harry? 

known patient and setting emergency department

1. Hi, Harry. I am your nurse Mihira here. How are you feeling now?
2. Hello, Harry. I am Mihira, I will be your nurse in the emergency department. What brings you here today?
3. Hi, I am Mihira. I will be your nurse here today. What seems to be the problem today, Harry?
4. My name is Mihira and I will be the nurse attending you today. How are you, Harry? 

known patient and setting home visit

1. Hi, Good to see you, Harry. My name is Mihira and I am a nurse from the hospital. Today I’m here to discuss/talk about/show you how to….. 
2. Hi Harry, Good morning. My name is Mihira and I am one of the nurses working in the hospital. I’m here to discuss/talk about/show you how to….. 
3. Good Morning Harry. I am your nurse, Mihira, from the hospital. How are you?”
4. Hello, I’m Mihira, I am one of the nurses working in the hospital. I am here today to check/ discuss/talk about/show you how to…..  ?” How are you, Harry? 

Community Health Centre / Community Clinic

In a Community Health Centre / Community Clinic setting, mostly you may assume you have not met the patient before. Perhaps as per the scenarios, it might confuse you.  

For example, if the scenario is explaining medication or dietary patterns after a doctor’s consultation, the patient may or may not be known to you. Therefore, you could introduce yourself and your role:

“Hi, my name is _____ and I am the community nurse here today…”

Then you can ask one of the following:

“What can I do for you today? / “How can I help you?” / “What brings you here today?” / “What seems to be the problem today?”

Hospital Ward / Emergency Department

In this setting, you may know the patient and some details. For example:

“Hi, I’ll be the nurse looking after you. I can see from your notes that _____.”

You could then also ask:

“How are you feeling?” / “What can I do for you?” / “How are you going?”

Home Visit

In this setting, you have arrived with a CLEAR role and purpose. This should be presented in your introduction:

“Hi, my name is _____ and I am the nurse from the local hospital. Today I’m here to discuss/talk about/show you how to….”

These are examples of the three settings you will get – make sure you practice all of these during your preparation for the OET speaking test!

A word of warning!

Do NOT just memorize these phrases to use in the exam! It will be very obvious if you just say set phrases that may not apply to the specific scenario. However, I find it useful to have some phrases in the back of my mind that I can adapt to use for the patient in front of me.

Good Morning, My name is Joanne Smith, I am your general practitioner. Before we start can I check your name?”

Hello, I’m Joanne Smith, I am one of the surgical doctors. Firstly can I check how you would prefer to be called?”

“Thank you, Mrs. Brown. Now tell me, what has brought you in to see me today?”

“Thank you, John. I understand you have asked to see me as you have some concerns about your operation. I am here to answer your questions as best as I can