Can you use abbreviations in OET Writing? A guide for nurses
Write case-note shorthand in full in an OET Nursing letter: 'pt', 'SOB', 'BD', 'c/o' and 'h/o' are note form, not letter English. A small number of abbreviations that any health professional reading the letter would understand without effort, such as 'GP' or units like 'mg', are generally lower risk, but writing terms in full is the safer choice whenever you are unsure. Abbreviations affect Genre & Style and Conciseness & Clarity, because the reader should never have to decode your letter.
The short answer
OET case notes are written in note form, full of abbreviations, because that is how nurses write notes. Your letter is not notes. It is a formal letter to another professional, and it is assessed partly on Genre & Style (is the register right for the reader?) and Conciseness & Clarity (can the reader find and understand the key information easily?). Both suffer when the reader has to decode shorthand.
A useful rule: if it came from the case notes as shorthand, write it out. If it is a term that the specific reader would read as easily as the full form, it is lower risk, but writing in full is never wrong.
Three groups of abbreviations
| Group | Examples | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Case-note shorthand | pt, c/o, h/o, SOB, N/V, NBM, mobs, obs, ✓, ↑, ↓ | Always write in full |
| Clinical frequency and route shorthand | bd, tds, qid, prn, PO, IV, SC, OD | Write in full: "twice daily", "as required", "orally", "intravenously" |
| Widely understood terms | GP, mg, mL, kg | Generally fine for a health professional reader; write in full for a non-professional reader |
Between those groups sit clinical acronyms such as COPD, CABG, DVT, UTI or BKA. Some readers will know them instantly; others, depending on their specialty, may not. Writing the condition in full the first time ("chronic obstructive pulmonary disease") removes the doubt. If the term appears again, many teachers consider a bracketed abbreviation on first use, then the abbreviation, acceptable, but it rarely saves enough words to be worth the risk in a letter of this length.
A conversion table
| Case notes say | Write in the letter |
|---|---|
| Pt c/o SOB on exertion | The patient reports shortness of breath on exertion |
| h/o T2DM, HTN | She has a history of type 2 diabetes and hypertension |
| Metformin 500 mg bd | metformin 500 mg twice daily |
| Paracetamol 1 g prn | paracetamol 1 g as required |
| NBM from midnight | nil by mouth from midnight (or: not to eat or drink from midnight) |
| Mobs c ZF | mobilising with a walking frame |
| Obs stable | his observations are stable (or: his vital signs are within normal limits) |
| ↑ confusion overnight | increased confusion overnight |
| D/C home 14/3 | to be discharged home on 14 March |
| F/U OPD 2/52 | a follow-up outpatient appointment in two weeks |
Note "2/52": the notes write weeks as a fraction of 52. Never copy that into a letter.
Worked example: before and after
The patient and details below are fictional.
Case notes (extract):
79 y.o. F. Adm 2/6 # NOF (L) after fall at home. ORIF 3/6. Mobs c ZF + 1 assist. Pain controlled — paracetamol 1 g QID, oxycodone 5 mg prn. Hx: AF on warfarin, OA knees. Lives alone, 2-storey house.
Letter with copied shorthand (weak):
Mrs Clarke, 79 y.o., was adm on 2/6 with # NOF (L) post fall. She had ORIF on 3/6 and is mobs c ZF + 1 assist. Pain is controlled with paracetamol QID and oxycodone prn. Hx of AF on warfarin.
Rewritten in full (strong):
Mrs Clarke, aged 79, was admitted on 2 June with a fractured left hip after a fall at home, and underwent surgical repair the following day. She is now walking with a frame and the assistance of one person. Her pain is well controlled with regular paracetamol and oxycodone as required. Please note that she takes warfarin for atrial fibrillation.
What changed:
- Every abbreviation is gone, and the result reads as a letter, not a chart.
- "ORIF" became "surgical repair": the reader needs to know the hip was fixed, not the technique.
- "OA knees" was left out: it doesn't affect what this reader must do.
- The warfarin is flagged with "Please note", because a reader managing falls risk and wound care needs it.
For more on deciding what to keep and what to cut, see selecting relevant case notes. For turning note form into sentences more generally, see turning OET case notes into full sentences.
Why abbreviations cost more than they save
- They don't save many words. "SOB on exertion" vs "shortness of breath on exertion" is two words. A single irrelevant case note costs far more.
- They make the reader work. The reader must stop, decode, and sometimes guess. That runs against Conciseness & Clarity.
- They signal the wrong genre. Shorthand is the register of notes and handover sheets. A letter to a colleague you may never have met calls for full, formal sentences, which is what Genre & Style measures.
- Some are ambiguous. "MS" might be multiple sclerosis or mitral stenosis; "PT" might be patient or physiotherapy. Writing in full removes the risk of a clinical misunderstanding.
Quick self-check before you finish
- Scan the letter for any word in capitals that isn't a name or the start of a sentence.
- Scan for slashes, arrows and numbers followed by "/52" or "/7".
- Scan for Latin dosing shorthand: bd, tds, qid, prn, mane, nocte.
- For each one, ask: would this exact reader understand it instantly? If you hesitate, write it out.
Practise and check
Take a timed letter from the practice case notes, or upload a letter you have already written, typed or as a photo of a handwritten page. medEmu marks note form and abbreviations on your own sentences and shows the full version, with Genre & Style and Conciseness & Clarity marked separately. Your first letter is graded free without an account. Grades are estimates for practice, not official OET results, and medEmu is not affiliated with OET.
Related guides: OET Nursing referral letter structure · OET Writing criteria explained.
Sources
This guide is medEmu's writing advice; it is not official OET guidance. For OET's official information on the Writing sub-test and its assessment criteria, see oet.com.