Follow the 34 tips given in the sample OET Transfer Letter with case notes below, and you will find that securing A or B for OET writing sub-test is much easier than thought.
A transfer letter is usually addressed to a medical professional to request further care/treatment/management after a change in residential location (from one residential care to another). In some cases, it could be transfer from one department to another department in the same medical facility.
In this scenario, the patient who has undergone appropriate investigations/care/treatment in one department is transferred to another department in the same hospital or a different hospital, where the patient has to ‘stay’. For example, from surgical ICU to ward of the same hospital, from a hospital to a rehabilitation centre, etc.
Please note, it may sound like a discharge letter as some case notes may include the word ‘discharge’ in places. Therefore, read the case notes carefully to understand the following differences.
- The patient is discharged to his/her residential location.
- The continuity of care is then the responsibility of the patient’s GP/primary care physician or nursing home.
- The addressee has an existing relation with the patient, which means the intended reader may already know the patient and his/her history.
Transfer Letter
- The patient is transferred to a new residential care.
- The continuity of care is the responsibility of concerned medical professional of the residential care.
- The addressee does not know the patient or his/her history. Therefore, (only) relevant medical/social/family that supports the expected care/action by the addressee should be included.
Therefore, always keep in mind who is the intended reader and what he/she should know.
The sample transfer letter given below will help you understand how to select case notes for this specific scenario, present them appropriately using good vocabulary and organize them logically.
It’s worth reading the entire article as the tips given are universal and easily apply to any type of OET case notes scenario. Last but not least, don’t forget to take the mock test and quiz given at the end.
Table of Contents
- OET Case Notes for Transfer Letter
- Date & Recipient Details
- Introduction – Patient, Medical Issue & the Purpose
- Body Paragraph 1 – Medical/Social history
- Body Paragraph 2 – Events that led to the diagnosis
- Body Paragraph 3 – Current Hospitalization
- Conclusion – Expected care/action by the reader
- Closing Sentence – Not Included in Word Count
- Complimentary Close – Yours…
- Mock Test – Test Your Writing Skills
- Final Sample Letter
- Quiz – Check Your Knowledge
| OET Case Notes Transfer Letter (Medicine) |
| Note: You are the resident doctor on the medical ward of Weiss Hospital, where Mrs. Garber was admitted for pacemaker placement surgery. PATIENT DETAILS: Name: Christina Garber DOB: 15/09/1944 (77 YO) Cultural and religion data: British & Catholic, native English speaker Admission Date: 3rd Jan 2022 Discharge Date: 20th Jan 2022 Social History:
Medical History and Medications:
TREATMENT SUMMARY:
Diagnosis: Bradycardia with progressive AV block
03/01/2022
20/01/2022
Plan @ Rehab Facility:
Writing Task |
Let us structure the first part of the sample transfer letter and see what information should be included there.
| Date & Recipient Details |
| Date (Relevant date as per the case notes or Date of Examination) Full name of the recipient with title Greeting (Dear ……. ) (Second name of the recipient with appropriate title) Reference line (Re: the patient’s full name & DOB) Tip 1: ‘20 January 2022’ is the preferred date format at the start. In real exam, it is generally the examination date that should be written at the top. Tip 2:  Interchanging the order of Date & Recipient’s Details is acceptable. Tip 3:  Interchanging the order of Greeting & Reference Line is acceptable. Tip 4:  If date of birth (DOB) is given, write that in the reference line. If age is also given, mention that in introduction. Tip 5: If the recipient is not a doctor (Dr.), use appropriate title. Tip 6: Watch the spelling. If you are using British/American spelling, be consistent in the letter. Avoid mixing the styles. 20 January 2021 Mr. William Connolly Dear Mr. Connolly RE: Mrs. Christina Garber, DOB: 15/09/1944 |
Now, let us take a stepwise approach to composing each paragraph.
| Introduction Patient, Medical Issue & Purpose |
| Writing ‘introduction’ of a transfer OET letter is similar to a referral or a discharge letter. It covers the name of the patient, introduces the medical complaint and discusses the reason(s) for writing the letter. Tip 7:  Keep in mind that excluding the purpose would affect your score negatively. Tip 8:  Read the ‘Note’ & ‘Writing Task’ given at the start and end of the case notes respectively to identify the purpose. Tip 9: You may use the key word ‘transfer’ to indicate the purpose as you are writing to transfer the patient to the care of the addressee. Tip 10:  Avoid using ‘your patient’ as this is similar to referral or emergency scenarios, when the recipient is seeing the patient for the first time. Tip 11:  Avoid using ‘a/the/this/my patient’ to refer to the patient in the letter as it is considered less polite. Tip 12:  Write full name with title at the first occurrence in introduction as the patient is an adult. Tip 13: In introduction, the purpose should be general information related to expected care/action. A specific & detailed plan should be included in conclusion. Tip 14: Try to include when the patient will be transferred. Tip 15: Avoid secondary information/details that may obscure the objective of introduction. |
Introduce the patient. Refer PATIENT DETAILSMrs. Christina Garber, a 77-year-old woman Medical Complaint: Refer Note & Plan dated 20/01/2022Admitted to Weiss Hospital for admitted for pacemaker placement surgery for a heart block Reason for writing the letter: Refer Writing Task.Write a transfer letter to Mr. William Connolly, …… for further rehabilitation. |
| The introduction of your OET letter is now I am writing to transfer Mrs. Christina Garber, a 77-year-old woman who underwent permanent pace maker placement surgery. Her condition is stable and requires rehabilitation at your center following her discharge today. |
| Body Paragraph 1 Medical/Social history |
| Refer ‘Social History’ & ‘Medical History and Medications’. Tip 16:  Relevant information. Select only what the reader (a physiotherapist) should keep in mind while the patient is in his care. Tip 17: Irrelevant information/details should be ignored. Otherwise, it may confuse the reader, and even be counter-productive as it may increase the length of your letter. Social/Medical family:
Medical History and Medications:
Tip 18: Â Use second name with appropriate title when referring to the (adult) patient initially in a paragraph. Tip 19: Â Avoid using pronouns to refer to the patient at the first occurrence in a paragraph. Tip 20: Generic drug names (insulin pump, sertraline and metoprolol) should not be capitalized. |
| Let’s compile relevant information and compose the body paragraph 1 as follows. Mrs. Garber lives with her husband and has type1 diabetes, depression and hypertension, for which she is on insulin pump, sertraline and metoprolol, respectively. She also wears a hearing aid. |
| Body Paragraph 2 Events that led to the diagnosis |
| Refer ‘TREATMENT SUMMARY’ dated 16/12/2021. Tip 21:  Detailed medical information and technical terms should be avoided as you are writing to a physiotherapist. (Instead of ‘second-degree AV block type 2’, you may say ‘second-degree heart block’.) TREATMENT SUMMARY: 16/12/2021
Diagnosis: Bradycardia with progressive AV block
Tip 22: Exact dates of initial admission and discharge are not important. Tip 23: Numerical values of tests and vital signs are not relevant to the reader. |
| This paragraph can be written as below. In December 2021, Mrs. Garber was diagnosed with bradycardia when she was admitted to Weiss hospital following a fall at home. An ECG confirmed a second-degree heart block Additionally, her creatinine level was elevated, indicating a possible renal failure. |
| Body Paragraph 3 Current Hospitalization |
| Refer ‘TREATMENT SUMMARY’ dated 03/01/2022 & 20/01/2022. 03/01/2022
20/01/2022
NOTE:  Refer Tips 16, 17 & 21. Tip 24: Avoid repeating ‘permanent pacemaker (PPM) placement surgery’ as it is already mentioned in introduction. ‘The surgery’ is sufficient. Tip 25: Mention ‘Today’ as the letter is dated today as per case notes. |
| Compile relevant information to form the following. As part of management, Mrs. Garber underwent the surgery on 03/01/2022, and her post-operative recovery was uneventful. Today, Mrs. Garber’s condition was reviewed, and she is physically fit to be transferred for rehabilitative care. |
| Conclusion Expected Care/Action by the Reader |
| After briefing the reader on the patient’s medical history, conclude the letter explaining the purpose of the letter in detail. Refer ‘PLAN’ dated 20/01/2022. Plan @ Rehab Facility:
Tip 26:  This is the most relevant information to the reader and should be written in a separate paragraph for visibility. (This is the detailed/specific purpose of the letter, which was indicated in the introduction as ‘rehabilitation’.) Tip 27: Ensure no information related to expected care/action is excluded. Tip 28: Note that only the information related to further care was selected from the earlier parts of case notes (see the underlined information). Tip 29: Make sure the tone used is polite & formal. |
| Therefore, the letter can be concluded as below. In your care, please monitor Mrs. Garber’s BP and heart rate daily, hydrate her sufficiently and check her creatinine level weekly. Even though she can manage herself, assistance while commencing a new exercise regimen would be appreciated. Kindly note, activities that exert strain on her chest or left upper arm muscles should be avoided, and she should be refrained from raising the affected arm above the shoulder level. Mrs. Garber can be discharged home with her husband after a cardiology review at hospital. |
| Closing Sentence Not included in Word Count |
| Tip 30:  You can be relieved that the closing sentence is not considered for ‘word count’. However, remember not writing closing sentence may affect your score negatively. Tip 31:  A typical polite closing sentence can be written as the addressee can get back to the writer if he needs more information about the patient. In case of any queries, please do not hesitate to contact me. |
| Complementary Close Yours….. |
| Use appropriate salutations in the letter. Tip 32: Â Yours sincerely (If the name of the recipient is given.) Tip 33: Â Yours faithfully (If the name of the recipient is NOT given.) Tip 34 Â Write the name of the profession/designation indicated in the case notes. Give the name of the hospital or organization if given. In this case, Yours sincerely, |
| Final Sample Letter |
| 20 January 2022 Mr. William Connolly Dear Mr. Connolly RE: Mrs. Christina Garber, DOB: 15/09/1944 I am writing to transfer Mrs. Christina Garber, a 77-year-old woman who underwent permanent pace maker placement surgery. Her condition is stable and requires rehabilitation at your center following her discharge today. Mrs. Garber lives with her husband and has type1 diabetes, depression and hypertension, for which she is on insulin pump, sertraline and metoprolol, respectively. She also wears a hearing aid. In December 2021, Mrs. Garber was diagnosed with bradycardia when she was admitted to Weiss hospital following a fall at home. An ECG confirmed a second-degree heart block Additionally, her creatinine level was elevated, indicating a possible renal failure. As part of management, Mrs. Garber underwent the surgery on 03/01/2022, and her post-operative recovery was uneventful. Today, Mrs. Garber’s condition was reviewed, and she is physically fit to be transferred for rehabilitative care. In your care, please monitor Mrs. Garber’s BP and heart rate daily, hydrate her sufficiently and check her creatinine level weekly. Even though she can manage herself, assistance while commencing a new exercise program would be appreciated. Kindly note, activities that exert strain on her chest or left upper arm muscles should be avoided, and she should be refrained from raising the affected arm above the shoulder level. Mrs. Garber can be discharged home with her husband after a cardiology review at hospital. In case of any queries, please do not hesitate to contact me. Yours sincerely |
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