A wet dressing alone does not show how Mara Ellis’s wound changed. Compare the previous and current reviews, then ask for assessment and advice to the clinic.
Original practice material written by OETify. All people, services and records in this sample are fictional, for writing practice only. By the OETify editorial team.
Compare the clinic’s two reviews
| Detail | Previous review | Current review |
|---|---|---|
| Discharge from ankle wound | Small amount recorded | More discharge than previously; dressing wet on arrival |
| Discomfort | Mara reported little discomfort | Mara reported more discomfort than at the previous visit |
| Ability to attend | Mara attended Elm Walk community clinic | Alert and able to walk; can attend the specialist clinic if given an appointment |
| Fever | No entry in these notes | Mara explicitly reported no fever |
Further fictional notes:
- Mara is 59 and is receiving dressing care after an ankle injury while gardening.
- The clinic nurse changed the dressing and contacted Cedar Wound Service.
- Elm Walk will continue the existing dressing plan pending specialist advice.
- The specialist wound nurse is asked to assess the wound and advise Elm Walk on further care.
- Mara requests a telephone call with appointment details.
- The clinic has a record of the current dressing plan to accompany the referral.
Write the referral before reading the model
You are a nurse at Elm Walk community clinic. Today is 9 October 2026. Write to Ms Alison Reid, Specialist Wound Nurse, Cedar Wound Service, 55 Cedar Road, Elmhurst. Request the assessment and advice recorded above.
Choose between these opening summaries, or write your own:
- “Please assess Ms Ellis’s ankle wound following a gardening injury; her dressing was wet at today’s review.”
- “Please assess Ms Ellis’s ankle wound because discharge and reported discomfort have increased since the previous review, and advise our clinic on further care.”
Decide which observations explain the referral and which details help arrange or continue care. A complete letter can retain Mara’s walking ability and fever report without putting them ahead of the wound change.
Model referral retaining the comparison
Model letter
Ms Alison Reid
Specialist Wound Nurse
Cedar Wound Service
55 Cedar Road
Elmhurst9 October 2026
Dear Ms Reid,
Re: Mara Ellis, aged 59
Ms Ellis attends Elm Walk community clinic for dressing care following an ankle injury she sustained while gardening. Please assess her ankle wound, as discharge and her reported discomfort have increased since the previous review. Please also advise our clinic on further care.
At the previous review, a small amount of discharge was recorded and Ms Ellis reported little discomfort. At today’s review, however, her dressing was wet on arrival and there was more discharge than previously. She reported more discomfort than at the previous visit and said she had no fever. She was alert and able to walk.
The clinic nurse changed the dressing and contacted your service. We will continue the existing dressing plan while we await your assessment and advice. A record of the current plan accompanies this referral.
Ms Ellis is able to attend your clinic if an appointment is arranged, and she would like a telephone call with the appointment details. Please send your findings and care advice to Elm Walk so that we can continue her dressing care accordingly.
Thank you for your help with Ms Ellis’s care.
Yours sincerely,
Meera Iyer
Registered Nurse, Elm Walk Community Clinic
What the comparison contributes
The first proposed opening identifies an assessment, but leaves the change and advice request unstated. The second supplies both, though its longer sentence can be split as in the model. The previous amount of discharge matters because it establishes the comparison. Mara’s attendance and telephone request matter later, when arranging the assessment. The accompanying plan shows what Elm Walk is continuing pending advice.
The model makes no diagnosis from the recorded changes.
These notes apply OET’s Writing assessment criteria.
| Criterion | Note-to-letter choice |
|---|---|
| Purpose | Assessment and advice appear as separate requests; the ending identifies Elm Walk as the recipient of findings. |
| Content | Previous discharge and discomfort establish the baseline; current entries show the increase. The no-fever report is attributed to Mara in both notes and model. |
| Conciseness and Clarity | The injury receives one background sentence. The comparison has more space because it explains this referral. |
| Genre and Style | The model describes discharge and reported discomfort without naming an unrecorded diagnosis or judging Mara. |
| Organisation and Layout | Wound changes precede completed clinic care, then attendance arrangements. Each paragraph answers a different need of the specialist. |
| Language | “Have increased” connects the current observation to the earlier review; “she reported” retains the source of discomfort and fever information. |
A weaker referral that flattens the change
Weaker version (do not copy)
Ms Alison Reid
Specialist Wound Nurse
Cedar Wound Service
55 Cedar Road
Elmhurst9 October 2026
Dear Ms Reid,
Re: Mara Ellis, aged 59
Please review Ms Ellis’s ankle wound following a gardening injury. At her clinic reviews there has been discharge and discomfort. Her dressing was wet on arrival and has been changed. She reported no fever and was alert and able to walk.
Elm Walk has contacted your service and will continue dressing care. The dressing plan accompanies this letter. Ms Ellis can attend your clinic and requests a telephone call with appointment details. Please arrange an assessment and let her know your advice.
Yours sincerely,
Meera Iyer
Registered Nurse, Elm Walk Community Clinic
| Effect on the specialist’s understanding | Correction |
|---|---|
| “At her clinic reviews” makes the discharge and discomfort sound unchanged | Restore the earlier small amount and little discomfort, then the current increase. |
| “Will continue dressing care” loses the boundary of the current plan | Specify the existing plan pending specialist advice; this is not a transfer of all care. |
| “Let her know your advice” omits the clinic’s requested care advice | Ask for findings and advice to Elm Walk, while retaining the telephone request for Mara’s appointment. |
Rewrite the weaker comparison without using “worse” or “better”. State the two recorded changes and check that both specialist actions still have a named recipient.