PEBC Case-Based Questions: How Patient Cases Work on the MCQ

As at 12 Oct 2026, PEBC says each Part I form has "a balanced proportion of standalone and case-based questions" (pebc.ca FAQ). A case-based set is two or more questions on one patient, introduced with a line such as "QUESTIONS 68 TO 70 INCLUSIVE REFER TO THE FOLLOWING:" (PEBC sample questions PDF, Sept 2026).

What a case looks like

A short patient profile: initials and age, the setting, the presenting problem, medical history, current medications with doses, allergies, and relevant labs in SI units. Each question in the set then asks one thing about that patient: the best therapy, a monitoring parameter, a counselling point, a dose or an interaction.

In PEBC's published sample questions, about 3 in 10 items sit in case sets of two or three questions, and case vignettes run from about 45 to 145 words (our count of the sample PDF; we never copy its items).

How to read a case fast

• Read the question first, then scan the case for what it needs.
• Note the age, renal function, pregnancy or breastfeeding, allergies and current drugs: these are the facts that change the answer.
• Treat each question in the set on its own; one wrong answer does not carry into the next.
• Do not re-read the whole case for every question; keep a short note on the dry-erase board.

On our mock screen

Our mocks keep each case whole and in order, and show it above each of its questions under the heading "Questions N to M refer to the following", the way PEBC's screen does. See the full-length mocks and the PEBC MCQ format.

Many case questions are calculations: see PEBC calculations questions.