How to Run an EDAIC Part 2 Mock Viva at Home: A Practical Protocol

The EDAIC Part 2 structured oral examination (SOE) is the final hurdle between you and the European Diploma in Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care. Unlike the Part 1 written papers, the viva tests your ability to think aloud, structure clinical reasoning under pressure, and respond to follow-up questions that adapt to your answers. Many candidates find the oral format daunting—especially if their training programme offers limited formal viva practice. The good news is that you can run effective EDAIC mock viva sessions at home, alone or with a colleague, using a repeatable protocol anchored to the official syllabus.

This article sets out a practical, step-by-step method for EDAIC Part 2 viva practice. It will not reproduce confidential exam stations—those belong to ESAIC and change each cycle—but it will teach you how to build your own guided-question ladders, time your preparation and delivery, record and score your answers, and retest weak domains until your structure and reasoning improve.

Why Home Mock Vivas Work

The EDAIC Part 2 viva is criterion-referenced: examiners score you against a defined standard of competence, not against other candidates. That standard rewards clear structure, safe clinical reasoning, and the ability to justify your decisions when challenged. A well-designed practice oral anaesthesia exam at home trains exactly those skills.

Home sessions also let you:

• Control the pace. You decide which syllabus domains to drill and how often to repeat a station.
• Identify knowledge gaps early. Recording your answers exposes vague reasoning and gaps in pharmacology, physiology or guidelines before exam day.
• Build confidence speaking aloud. Many trainees read extensively but rarely verbalise their reasoning; home vivas force you to articulate answers as you will in the real exam.
• Simulate exam conditions. Timed preparation, a single attempt at each question, and scoring against published criteria replicate the pressure of the SOE.

Key point: Home mock vivas are formative practice, not leaked exam content. The goal is to train your method of answering, not to memorise specific stations.

The Six-Step Home Mock Viva Protocol

1. Choose a Syllabus Domain and Write a Guided-Question Ladder

The official EDAIC Part 2 syllabus (published on the ESAIC website) divides content into domains: general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia, intensive care, pain, emergency medicine, and sub-specialties (cardiac, neuro, paediatric, obstetric, thoracic). Each viva station explores one domain through a guided-question ladder: an opening clinical scenario followed by a series of follow-up questions that deepen or shift focus depending on your answers.

To write your own ladder:

1. Pick a domain. For example, "obstetric anaesthesia" or "cardiac intensive care."
2. Draft an opening scenario. Keep it realistic and exam-appropriate: "A 34-year-old woman at 38 weeks' gestation presents for elective caesarean section. She has a BMI of 42 and a history of asthma. Discuss your anaesthetic plan."
3. Write 4–6 follow-up questions. These should probe structure ("How will you assess her airway?"), physiology ("Explain the cardiovascular changes of pregnancy relevant to neuraxial anaesthesia"), pharmacology ("Which local anaesthetic will you use for the spinal and why?"), safety ("What are your criteria for converting to general anaesthesia?"), and guidelines ("Summarise the OAA/AAGBI guidance on failed intubation in obstetrics").
4. Ensure the ladder has depth. Early questions should be broad; later questions should challenge nuance or ask you to justify a decision.

Use standard textbooks, the ESAIC recommended reading list, and national guidelines (UK Obstetric Anaesthetists' Association, European Resuscitation Council, etc.) to ensure your questions reflect current best practice. Do not invent facts or guidelines.

2. Set a Timer for Preparation

In the real EDAIC Part 2 viva, you typically receive the opening scenario and have a short preparation period to gather your thoughts. Replicate this at home by allowing yourself a brief preparation window (commonly around two minutes, though you should confirm current exam format details on the official ESAIC website):

• Read the opening scenario.
• Start your preparation timer.
• Jot down a brief structure (bullet points, headings, key drugs or thresholds) on paper.
• When the timer sounds, stop writing.

This trains you to organise your answer quickly and resists the temptation to over-prepare or look up every detail.

3. Record Your Answer (Voice Memo or Video)

Now deliver your answer aloud, as if speaking to an examiner. Use your phone's voice-memo app or a simple video recording. Speak for 8–10 minutes, working through the opening scenario and the follow-up questions you wrote.

• Start with structure. "I will approach this case by assessing the patient, planning the anaesthetic technique, preparing for complications, and ensuring post-operative care."
• Answer each follow-up question in turn. Pause briefly between questions to simulate the examiner's interjection.
• Think aloud. Verbalise your reasoning: "I would choose levobupivacaine 0.5% heavy because it provides reliable motor block for surgery, has a lower risk of cardiotoxicity than racemic bupivacaine, and the hyperbaric formulation ensures predictable spread in the sitting position."
• Admit uncertainty honestly. If you cannot recall a specific guideline, say so and outline a safe, logical approach instead.

Do not stop and restart the recording. Treat it as a single, timed attempt.

4. Listen Back and Score Structure, Content and Reasoning

Play the recording and score yourself against three criteria:

Use a simple three-point scale for each criterion: Strong / Adequate / Weak. A pass-standard answer scores Adequate or Strong on all three. If you score Weak on any criterion, that domain needs more work.

Exam tip: Examiners often say they are marking your process as much as your knowledge. A well-structured answer that admits a knowledge gap and outlines a safe plan can still pass; a disorganised answer full of facts often fails.

5. Identify Gaps and Revise Targeted Content

Review the recording and note specific gaps:

• Did you forget the dose of intrathecal morphine?
• Could you not explain aortocaval compression?
• Did you confuse the OAA failed-intubation algorithm with the DAS guidelines?

Write these gaps on a revision list. Spend 20–30 minutes immediately after the session reading the relevant section of a standard text (e.g. current editions of well-regarded anaesthesia textbooks on the ESAIC recommended reading list, such as Anaesthesia and Intensive Care A–Z or the Oxford Handbook of Anaesthesia) or the official guideline. Do not try to memorise entire chapters; focus on the specific knowledge you lacked.

6. Retest the Same Domain One Week Later

Repetition is the key to long-term retention and fluency. One week after your first attempt, write a different guided-question ladder in the same domain (e.g. a different obstetric scenario: pre-eclampsia, placenta praevia, post-partum haemorrhage) and repeat steps 2–5. Compare your second recording to your first. You should find your structure tighter, your reasoning clearer, and fewer content gaps.

Cycle through all the major domains over 8–12 weeks, returning to weak areas more frequently.

Running Mock Vivas with a Colleague

If you have a study partner also preparing for the EDAIC Part 2 viva, take turns as candidate and examiner:

• The "examiner" writes the guided-question ladder and asks the follow-up questions aloud, adapting them based on the candidate's answers (just as a real examiner would).
• The candidate answers without notes, as in the real exam.
• After 8–10 minutes, swap roles and debrief: the examiner gives structured feedback on structure, content and reasoning; the candidate reflects on what felt difficult.

This peer format is closer to the real SOE and helps both participants learn—the examiner deepens their own knowledge by writing questions and listening critically.

What Home Mock Vivas Cannot Do

Be realistic about the limits of home practice:

• You cannot reproduce confidential exam stations. ESAIC does not publish past SOE questions, and recalled questions circulating informally are incomplete and often inaccurate. Do not waste time hunting for "real" questions; focus instead on training your method.
• You cannot replicate examiner behaviour. Real examiners may interrupt, ask tangential questions, or remain impassive. Home practice cannot fully prepare you for that interpersonal dynamic, but it will make your content and structure robust enough to withstand it.
• You need external feedback eventually. Self-assessment has limits. If your training programme offers formal mock vivas with senior consultants, attend them. If not, consider a commercial course in the final weeks before your exam—but only after you have drilled the basics at home.

Integrating Home Vivas into Your Study Plan

A balanced EDAIC Part 2 preparation plan might look like this:

• Weeks 1–4: Read systematically through the syllabus domains, making notes and flashcards.
• Weeks 5–12: Run one home mock viva per week (or two if time permits), cycling through all domains. Revise targeted gaps after each session.
• Weeks 13–16: Increase frequency to two vivas per week, focusing on weak domains. Attend a formal mock viva course if available.
• Final week: Light revision only—review your gap list, re-read key guidelines, and rest.

This phased approach ensures you build knowledge first, then train delivery and reasoning under exam conditions.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many home mock vivas should I do before the EDAIC Part 2?

Aim for at least 12–16 sessions covering all syllabus domains, with extra sessions on your weakest areas. Quality matters more than quantity: a well-structured, recorded, scored and reviewed session is worth far more than a vague, unrecorded run-through.

Can I use recalled questions from online forums for EDAIC SOE practice?

Recalled questions can give you a flavour of the exam's style, but they are incomplete, often inaccurate, and cannot substitute for systematic practice across the whole syllabus. Use them sparingly, if at all, and always cross-check content against official guidelines and standard texts.

Should I memorise scripts for common EDIAC viva topics?

No. Examiners recognise and penalise rote-learned scripts. Instead, memorise structures (e.g. "Assessment–Plan–Safety–Follow-up") and key facts (drug doses, physiological thresholds, guideline recommendations), then practise assembling them into fluent, reasoned answers. Home mock vivas train exactly that skill.

Where can I find the official EDAIC Part 2 syllabus and exam format details?

The official syllabus, examination regulations, and current dates are published on the ESAIC website under the EDAIC section (accessible via myESAIC for registered candidates). Always confirm details there, as formats and requirements can change between cycles.

Final Thoughts

The EDAIC Part 2 viva rewards candidates who can think aloud, structure their answers, and justify their clinical decisions under pressure. You do not need expensive courses or secret question banks to train those skills—you need a systematic, repeatable home practice protocol. Choose a syllabus domain, write a guided-question ladder, time your preparation and delivery, record and score your answer, revise your gaps, and retest. Repeat this cycle across all domains, and you will walk into the SOE confident that your structure and reasoning meet the standard ESAIC expects.

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