How mental health stations are set
The AMC Clinical is 16 assessed stations plus rest stations: 2 minutes of reading, then 8 minutes in the station. Fourteen stations are scored, and a pass needs a pass on 9 or more of them. Each station gets a global rating on a 7-point scale, informed by 2 to 5 key steps and 3 to 5 assessment domains. Read how the AMC Clinical is marked for the detail.
Stations are set in general practice, the emergency department or a community mental health service. Many ask for a focused psychiatric history with risk assessment, then a diagnosis or plan.
Common mental health stations
| Station | Focus |
|---|---|
| Low mood | Depressive symptoms, duration, function, mania screen, risk |
| Suicidal thoughts | Ideation, plans, means, protective factors, safety plan |
| First-episode psychosis | Hallucinations, delusions, drugs, insight, risk, early referral |
| Alcohol use | Quantity, dependence, withdrawal risk, brief intervention |
| Anxiety and panic | Triggers, avoidance, physical causes, CBT |
| Capacity and consent | Understand, retain, weigh, communicate |
A structure for risk assessment
- Risk to self: thoughts, plans, preparations, means, previous attempts.
- Risk to others: thoughts of harming anyone, including children in the household.
- Risk from others and vulnerability.
- Protective factors: family, beliefs, future plans.
- Plan: immediate safety, involve family with consent, urgent mental health review, crisis numbers such as Lifeline 13 11 14.
Mental state examination
Summarise appearance and behaviour, speech, mood and affect, thought form and content, perception, cognition, insight and judgement. In many stations you describe the MSE to the examiner after the history.
Worked station: low mood in general practice
Station walk-through · Mental health
Candidate brief: A 35-year-old man says he has felt low for 2 months. Take a history including risk assessment (6 minutes), then discuss your management (2 minutes).
| Time | What to do |
|---|---|
| 0:00 to 0:30 | Introduce, open question, empathic tone |
| 0:30 to 3:00 | Mood, anhedonia, sleep, appetite, energy, concentration, guilt; triggers; function |
| 3:00 to 4:30 | Suicide risk directly; mania and psychosis screen; alcohol and drugs |
| 4:30 to 6:00 | Past history, medicines, supports |
| 6:00 to 8:00 | Explain depression, psychological therapy via a mental health treatment plan, antidepressant option, follow-up and crisis numbers |
Where candidates lose marks: avoiding the suicide question, and not screening for previous mania before suggesting antidepressants.
Using the 2 minutes of reading time
- Read the setting: general practice, ward, emergency department or telehealth changes what is realistic.
- Underline each task and its time allocation, and plan your 8 minutes to match.
- Note the patient's age, sex and any cue in the brief (a medicine, an occupation, a family member present).
- Write a short list of the 3 diagnoses you must separate and the one dangerous condition you must not miss.
- In a mental health station, plan to ask about suicide and safety even if the brief does not mention it.
- Decide your opening sentence so you start calmly.
Check the current AMC candidate information for what you may bring or write during reading time. Whatever you plan, keep it short: there is no time to read a long list in the room.
High-yield stations to prepare
Mental health practice stations focus on histories with risk assessment, and on counselling about common treatments.
| Station | Likely task | Key step examiners look for |
|---|---|---|
| Suicide risk assessment | History | Direct questions about plans and means |
| First episode of psychosis | History | Drugs, insight, risk and early referral |
| Elevated mood and not sleeping | History | Mania features and safety |
| Low mood after childbirth | History | EPDS, risk to self and baby |
| Confusion in an older man | History | Delirium versus dementia |
| Panic attacks | Counselling | CBT and avoiding benzodiazepines |
| Alcohol and brief intervention | Counselling | Quantify and motivate |
| Request for sleeping tablets | Counselling | Sleep hygiene and safe prescribing |
| Weight loss in a teenager | History | Eating disorder and medical instability |
| Methamphetamine use | History | Psychosis, risk and harm reduction |
A one-week practice plan
| Day | Practice |
|---|---|
| Day 1 | Read the structure on this page and run 2 mental health stations untimed with a partner |
| Day 2 | Run 3 stations with the 2-minute reading timer and an 8-minute station timer |
| Day 3 | Record 2 stations on your phone; watch for jargon, interruptions and missed tasks |
| Day 4 | Swap roles: play the patient and the examiner, marking against the checklist |
| Day 5 | Run 3 new stations back to back with a 2-minute gap, as on exam day |
| Day 6 | Repeat the stations where your global rating was below 4 |
| Day 7 | Rest, then review your notes on the common mistakes below |
Our station bank lets you filter by discipline and station type, so you can follow this plan for each area of the exam.
Common mistakes in mental health stations
- Asking about suicide hesitantly or not at all.
- Missing substance use.
- Labelling without explaining.
- Breaching confidentiality when not justified.
- No safety plan.
Practise these as timed stations with a partner playing the patient and another marking against the checklist. Each of our mental health stations has a candidate brief, role-player script, examiner notes, marking checklist and a model approach.
Free sample mental health stations
Candidate briefs from our AMC Clinical station bank. Read the task, plan your 8 minutes, then open the marking checklist.
Suicide risk assessment (8 minutes)
You are a GP. Mr Liam Foster, 34, has booked a long appointment. His notes record that he was diagnosed with depression two years ago and stopped sertraline six months ago.
Tasks:
- Assess Mr Foster's mood and risk of suicide (6 minutes).
- Discuss your immediate plan with him (2 minutes).
The role-player script, examiner notes, marking checklist and model approach open with a plan.
First episode of psychosis (8 minutes)
You are a resident in an emergency department. Mr Ethan Walsh, 19, was brought in by his mother, who is worried about his behaviour.
Tasks:
- Take a history from Mr Walsh (5 minutes).
- Present your assessment and management plan to the examiner (3 minutes).
The role-player script, examiner notes, marking checklist and model approach open with a plan.
Practise mental health stations free
Every mental health station in our bank
The bank holds 10 mental health stations across 2 station types: Counselling and education (3), History taking (7). Each one has a candidate brief, role-player script, examiner notes, marking checklist and model approach.
- Alcohol use and brief interventionCounselling and education
- Confusion in an older manHistory taking
- Elevated mood and not sleepingHistory taking
- First episode of psychosisHistory taking
- Low mood after childbirthHistory taking
- Methamphetamine useHistory taking
- Panic attacksCounselling and education
- Request for sleeping tabletsCounselling and education
- Suicide risk assessmentHistory taking
- Weight loss in a teenagerHistory taking
Common questions
Should I ask about suicide directly?
Yes. Asking directly does not increase risk and is expected in mental health stations.
What services can I refer to in Australia?
GP mental health treatment plans under Better Access, community mental health teams, headspace for young people and crisis services.
Do I need to present an MSE?
Often. Practise summarising the mental state examination in under a minute.
Sources
Clinical content is summarised from current Australian guidance at the date above. Guidelines change, so always check the latest edition.