Guide

How to practise clinical reasoning

Clinical reasoning is the skill of getting from a patient's story to a diagnosis and a plan. It is learned by doing cases, not by rereading lists. This page sets out a simple way to practise it and how a case quiz fits in.

1. Start from the presentation, not the answer

Read the age, the complaint and the first findings. Before you look at any result, say out loud your top three diagnoses and what would make each more or less likely. This is the step multiple-choice questions skip, because the options are already on the page.

2. Order tests that change your decision

For every test ask: if this comes back normal, and if it comes back abnormal, would I do anything differently? If not, it is probably not worth ordering. Real clinicians are constrained by time, cost and risk to the patient, and a good practice tool should be too.

3. Commit, then check yourself

Decide on a diagnosis before reading the explanation. Then compare: what did you rule in, what did you rule out, and which finding did you misread? Write the one thing you would do differently next time.

4. Revisit your weak areas

Track accuracy by specialty. If cardiology cases keep going wrong, do more of them, and read the differential for each one, not just the final answer.

5. Keep sessions short and regular

One or two cases a day, every day, beats a long session once a week. Spaced repetition works for diagnostic patterns just as it does for facts.

How ClinQuiz supports this

ClinQuiz turns the steps above into a game. Every case starts at 100 points. Opening an investigation costs points, and each extra one costs more, so ordering everything is a bad strategy. A wrong guess costs points too, and a blind guess costs the most. After each case you get a breakdown covering the definition, pathophysiology, differential diagnosis, treatment and complications. Accuracy is tracked by specialty, and there are timed duels against other players.

To see the format before you install anything, read the free sample case.

Try it in the app

ClinQuiz has a new case every day on iPhone and Android. The free plan includes daily cases; a subscription unlocks every case and every investigation. Download ClinQuiz.

Last updated 18 October 2026. Medical education only: all cases are simulated and must not guide real patient care.