OET Conciseness & Clarity: how to cut a nursing letter without losing key information
Conciseness & Clarity (marked 0–7) rewards a letter that leaves out what the reader does not need and makes what they do need easy to find. Cut case notes that are irrelevant to this reader or already known to them, combine related facts into one sentence, and replace wordy phrases ('due to the fact that' → 'because'). Never cut a fact the reader needs to act safely; conciseness is about relevance, not shortness.
What Conciseness & Clarity measures
Conciseness & Clarity is one of OET's six Writing criteria, marked from 0 to 7. In plain terms, it asks:
- Have you left out information the reader doesn't need? For example details already known to them, outside their role, or resolved and unrelated.
- Have you summarised the case notes clearly, rather than repeating them line by line?
- Is the key information easy to find, without wordy sentences or repetition?
It works with Content, which asks the opposite question: did you include what the reader does need? Deciding which notes go in is covered in selecting relevant case notes. This guide is about the next step: saying what you kept efficiently.
Three ways to tighten a letter
1. Cut by reader, not by habit
The same note can be essential for one reader and irrelevant for another.
| Case note | GP | Physiotherapist | Dietitian |
|---|---|---|---|
| Walks with a frame, 2 falls this year | Include | Include (key) | Usually omit |
| Lost 4 kg in 2 months, poor appetite | Include | Usually omit | Include (key) |
| Appendicectomy 1985 | Omit | Omit | Omit |
| Enjoys gardening | Omit unless linked to a goal | Include if it is a mobility goal | Omit |
Ask of each note: does this reader need it to understand the situation or do their part? If not, leave it out.
2. Combine related facts
Separate: Mr Iyer takes metformin. He also takes atorvastatin. He takes ramipril as well.
Combined: Mr Iyer's regular medications are metformin, atorvastatin and ramipril.
Grouping also helps organisation: one sentence on medications, one on mobility, one on home support. See Organisation & Layout.
3. Replace wordy phrases
| Wordy | Concise |
|---|---|
| due to the fact that | because |
| at this point in time | now / currently |
| in the event that | if |
| was noted to have | had |
| is in a position to | can |
| on a daily basis | daily |
| I would like to take this opportunity to inform you | (delete; just give the information) |
| It is important to mention that | (delete; just say it) |
Before and after
Invented case notes:
Patient: Mrs Sunita Iyer, 79. Widow, lives alone in a ground-floor flat. Daughter visits weekly. Admission: fractured left wrist after a fall at home; cast applied. Background: hypertension (ramipril); cataract surgery 2019; appendicectomy 1970. Discharge: mobile without aid; needs help with meal preparation and dressing while in cast. Writing task: Write to the community care coordinator, Mr Daniel Kowalczyk, requesting home support.
Before (wordy and unfocused, 99 words):
I would like to take this opportunity to inform you that Mrs Iyer, who is a 79-year-old widow, was admitted to our ward due to the fact that she had a fall at home and was noted to have a fractured left wrist. A cast was applied. In terms of her past medical history, she has hypertension, for which she takes ramipril, and she had cataract surgery in 2019 and an appendicectomy in 1970. At this point in time she is mobile without an aid. However, she is not in a position to prepare meals or dress herself independently.
After (focused, 57 words):
Mrs Iyer, a 79-year-old widow who lives alone, sustained a fractured left wrist in a fall at home and now has a cast. Although she walks independently, she cannot prepare meals or dress herself while her wrist is immobilised. Her daughter visits weekly. I would be grateful if you could arrange daily help with meals and dressing.
What changed:
- Cut the resolved surgical history, which a care coordinator doesn't need.
- Cut "I would like to take this opportunity", "due to the fact that", "at this point in time", "was noted to have".
- Added "lives alone" and the daughter's weekly visit, because the coordinator needs them to plan support. Conciseness never means dropping a fact the reader needs.
- Linked the cast to the support need, so the reason for the request is clear.
Clarity: easy to read, not only short
A letter can be short and still unclear. Watch for:
- Long chains of "and". Split a sentence when it carries more than two or three ideas.
- Ambiguous "she" or "it". If two women are mentioned (patient and daughter), name one of them.
- Hidden key facts. Put the main point at the start of its paragraph, not in a subordinate clause.
- Repetition. If the diagnosis is in the opening, don't restate it in full in every paragraph.
Quick self-check
- Underline every fact in your letter. For each one: does this reader need it?
- Circle phrases from the wordy list above and replace them.
- Read the first sentence of each paragraph only. Do you get the main message?
- Check you didn't cut anything safety-critical: allergies, changes in medication, risks.
Practise and check
Take a case from the medEmu practice case notes and write the letter, then cut it by a third without losing any fact the reader needs. Check your letter: medEmu's case-notes coverage check shows which notes you included, missed, or included unnecessarily, and Conciseness & Clarity gets its own 0–7 mark. 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. For other frequent problems, see 12 common OET Writing mistakes.
Sources
This guide is medEmu's writing advice, not official OET guidance; the patient and case notes are invented. The criterion name and its 0–7 range are as OET describes them. For OET's official Writing assessment criteria and guidance, see oet.com.