Rehab medicine guides · Examiner reports

Why candidates lose marks in the AFRM exams

AFRM examiner reports repeat themselves from sitting to sitting. Most marks are not lost on rare facts; they are lost on how answers are written and on the same core gaps. These are the themes that come up most.

  1. Generic answers: marking guides reward specific points only.
  2. Applying a stroke template to another condition, e.g. motor neurone disease answered as recovery rather than anticipated decline.
  3. Answering a neighbouring question, e.g. "cognition" when asked about "cognitive communication", or general management when asked about return to work.
  4. Abbreviations used despite instructions.
  5. Unsafe or non-evidence-based advice, e.g. non-weight-bearing exercise for osteoporosis.
  6. Confusing FIM change with FIM efficiency, Ashworth with Tardieu, advance care planning with enduring power of attorney.
  7. Poor time management and talking around the topic in stations.
  8. Unsystematic examination, e.g. pinprick testing that stops short of the sacral segments.

What this looks like when it is marked

A Paper A question, an answer of the kind examiners see every sitting, and how a point-by-point marking guide scores it.

Question · 3 marks

On day 30 her admission Functional Independence Measure was 61 and today it is 85. Calculate her FIM efficiency and interpret it.

Answer

Her FIM change is 24 points, which is a good improvement and shows she is responding to rehabilitation. I would compare this with the benchmark for her impairment group…

✗Efficiency calculated: 24 ÷ 30 days = 0.8 points per day0/1
✓Compared against the AROC benchmark for her impairment group1/1
✗Interpreted: what the figure means for her plan and discharge0/1

The question asked for efficiency and you gave the change. Efficiency is the change divided by the length of stay in days. Examiners flag this exact mix-up every year.

How to practise against these

Reading a list of mistakes changes little. What changes the score is writing or speaking answers under exam conditions and being marked against specific points, so you can see exactly which one you missed. Do that for every area, weakest first, and repeat the ones you got wrong until they stick.

Know the references examiners expect: AROC and AN-SNAP; FIM; Westmead PTA scale; ISNCSCI; Austroads Assessing Fitness to Drive; NDIS; My Aged Care / Support at Home; TAC, icare and WorkCover; Stroke Foundation Living Clinical Guidelines.

Where do you stand?

Thirty questions across every area, scored by area with a plain verdict. Free.

Am I ready? Free check →Read a marked sample

Next: The AFRM exams explained: format, timing and how they are passed →

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