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Patient interview

How to interview a patient with abnormal vaginal bleeding

Other platforms explain it with text and video. In Making Synapses you practice it on the patient.

MD / DOPANursing (NCLEX)
Practice it in VR with Blocky

Pregnancy is the first question in any patient with abnormal vaginal bleeding who could be pregnant. After menopause, any bleeding needs evaluation.

Step by step

  1. Check stability

    Heavy bleeding with dizziness or fainting means call for help. [1]

  2. Introduce yourself and offer privacy

    Ask permission to ask personal questions; offer a chaperone for the exam. [2]

  3. Pregnancy

    Last period, chance of pregnancy, pregnancy test. Bleeding with pain in early pregnancy may be an ectopic pregnancy: urgent. [1]

  4. Pattern

    Heavy periods, bleeding between periods, after sex, after menopause. [3]

  5. Amount

    Pads or tampons per day, clots, flooding. [3]

  6. Associated symptoms

    Pain, discharge, fever, weight change, symptoms of anemia. [1]

  7. Medicines and history

    Hormones, birth control, IUD, blood thinners, last cervical screening. [1]

  8. Summarize and plan

    Explain the next steps. [2]

Common errors

Practice it in Making Synapses

In Making Synapses you do this on the patient, not on paper: every step goes on the checklist with a score, and in Teach mode Blocky tells you what comes next.

Making Synapses cases that train this skill

Sources

  1. NCCPA PANCE Content Blueprint
  2. AAMC Core Entrustable Professional Activities (Core EPAs)
  3. NBOME COMLEX-USA clinical presentations

Facts and steps follow NBOME COMLEX-USA clinical presentations; NCCPA PANCE Content Blueprint; AAMC Core Entrustable Professional Activities (Core EPAs). Making Synapses is not affiliated with these organizations. Updated: 2026-10-11.