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Short answer: These free pages hold original multiple-choice practice questions for the DHA licensing exam (nurses, physicians, dentists and pharmacists) and the EMREE residency exam (physicians). Every answer is explained. Meddex wrote them for exam preparation. They are not real exam items and are not connected to DHA or EMREE.
About these questions
Every question here is original. Meddex wrote it for exam preparation. None is a real, recalled or leaked exam item, and none comes from DHA, Prometric, UAE University or the NIHS.
Meddex is independent and is not affiliated with DHA, Prometric, UAE University or the NIHS.
Clinical review of the question bank is not complete yet. Treat the explanations as study aids and check official guidance before you rely on a fact.
This is a sample, not the whole bank, and doing well on it does not predict an exam result.
What you will find here
There are pages for each profession and pages for each topic, and 5 starter questions below, one for each audience. Pick your own profession or topic from the lists on this page. Press Show answer only after you have chosen, then read why each wrong option is wrong, because that is where most of the learning is.
These pages are a sample. The full bank, timed mock exams, flashcards and progress tracking are in the Meddex app, and you can start with a free account.
What these questions are, and what they are not
All of them are original. We write each one ourselves from the published subject areas and give it references. We do not use real, recalled or leaked questions: DHA says sharing its assessment questions is not allowed, and the EMREE organiser says candidates accept a confidentiality agreement. Material sold as real or recalled questions is either invented or copied from a sitting.
DHA does not publish sample questions, content weights or past papers, so no outside question set can show you the real paper. That includes this one. Use it to practise reasoning and to find gaps, not to guess the exam.
Clinical review of the question bank is not complete yet. Check any fact you plan to rely on against official guidance.
Starter questions
Nurse, DHA exam
Question 1
Fundamentals & Patient SafetyMedium
A patient booked for surgery tells the nurse that her lips swell and she itches after blowing up balloons and wearing gloves. What is the MOST appropriate nursing action?
AOption A: Use double latex gloves and a barrier cream so that the latex does not touch her skin
BOption B: Document a suspected latex allergy, alert the surgical team and request latex-free equipment
COption C: Give an antihistamine before she goes to theatre and then proceed as planned with standard equipment
DOption D: Reassure her that this is common and not significant because the reaction was mild and affected only the lips
Show answer for question 1
Correct answer: B. Document a suspected latex allergy, alert the surgical team and request latex-free equipment
Symptoms after contact with balloons and gloves suggest latex allergy, which can cause anaphylaxis. The nurse documents the risk, informs the theatre team and arranges a latex-free environment, ideally first on the operating list. Latex allergy can be associated with reactions to some fruits such as banana and avocado.
Why A is wrong. Double latex gloves still expose her to latex and a barrier cream does not prevent absorption.
Why C is wrong. Antihistamines do not reliably prevent a severe reaction, and exposure to latex continues.
Why D is wrong. Dismissing the history risks anaphylaxis during surgery from latex exposure.
Topic: Latex allergy. Reference: AORN Guidelines for Perioperative Practice; Brunner and Suddarth Textbook of Medical-Surgical Nursing
Physician, DHA exam
Question 2
Cardiovascular & RespiratoryMedium
A 58-year-old woman with non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis has 3 days of increased sputum volume and purulence with more breathlessness. She is afebrile with SpO2 94 percent on air. A culture 8 months ago grew Pseudomonas aeruginosa. What is the most appropriate management?
AOption A: Start oral prednisolone for one week as the main treatment, with antibiotics only if she worsens
BOption B: No antibiotic, with airway clearance only, because purulent sputum alone is not an indication
COption C: Send sputum and start a Pseudomonas-active antibiotic for 14 days, adjusting to the culture result
DOption D: A five-day course of amoxicillin without sending a sputum sample, as for a simple chest infection
Show answer for question 2
Correct answer: C. Send sputum and start a Pseudomonas-active antibiotic for 14 days, adjusting to the culture result
In an exacerbation of bronchiectasis, a sputum sample is sent before antibiotics and treatment is chosen from previous cultures. With a history of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, an antipseudomonal agent such as oral ciprofloxacin is used for 14 days and adjusted when the new culture returns. Airway clearance techniques continue alongside. Systemic corticosteroids are not routine, and a short amoxicillin course would not cover her known organism.
Why A is wrong. Corticosteroids do not treat the infection and are not routine in bronchiectasis.
Why B is wrong. Increased sputum volume and purulence with more breathlessness is an exacerbation, and antibiotics are indicated.
Why D is wrong. Amoxicillin has no reliable activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and guidelines advise 14 days for an exacerbation, so five days is too short.
Topic: Bronchiectasis: infective exacerbation and previous Pseudomonas. Reference: Hill AT et al. British Thoracic Society guideline for bronchiectasis in adults. Thorax 2019;74(Suppl 1):1-69; Polverino E et al. European Respiratory Society guidelines for the management of adult bronchiectasis. Eur Respir J 2017;50:1700629
Dentist, DHA exam
Question 3
EndodonticsMedium
Two months after replantation of an avulsed incisor that had been out of the mouth for 45 minutes, the radiograph shows saucer-shaped loss of root surface with adjacent radiolucency in the bone. The pulp is necrotic. What is the best treatment?
AOption A: Remove the infected pulp and dress with calcium hydroxide, renewed periodically, before obturation
BOption B: Leave the tooth alone and review in a year, since the resorption will arrest itself
COption C: Extract the tooth, because replanted teeth with resorption cannot be saved
DOption D: Place a bonded composite restoration over the labial surface, to seal the area of root resorption from the mouth
Show answer for question 3
Correct answer: A. Remove the infected pulp and dress with calcium hydroxide, renewed periodically, before obturation
External inflammatory resorption occurs when infected necrotic pulp tissue stimulates resorption of the root surface through damaged cementum, which then allows toxins to reach the periodontal ligament through dentinal tubules. Treatment removes the source, the infected canal contents, and places calcium hydroxide, which raises the pH, inhibits osteoclasts and disinfects. Dressing is repeated for several weeks or months until the resorption has stopped and a hard barrier or lamina dura is seen, then the canal is obturated. Leaving it would allow continuing loss of root.
Why B is wrong. Waiting allows rapid, progressive loss of root, because the source of infection remains.
Why C is wrong. Extraction is not required when the cause can be removed and the resorption arrested.
Why D is wrong. A labial restoration does not deal with the infected canal that drives the process.
Topic: External inflammatory resorption. Reference: International Association of Dental Traumatology guidelines for the management of traumatic dental injuries (2020); Hargreaves KM, Berman LH. Cohen's Pathways of the Pulp (resorptive defects)
Pharmacist, DHA exam
Question 4
Pharmacy CalculationsEasy
A 5 mL bottle of eye drops delivers 20 drops per mL. A patient is told to instil one drop into each eye twice daily. Ignoring waste, how many days would an unopened bottle last?
AOption A: 50 days
BOption B: 100 days
COption C: 25 days
DOption D: 12 days
Show answer for question 4
Correct answer: C. 25 days
Drops in the bottle = 5 mL x 20 = 100 drops. Daily use = 1 drop x 2 eyes x 2 times = 4 drops. Days = 100 / 4 = 25 days. In practice, most eye drops should be discarded 28 days after opening, and waste from poor technique means that the bottle may run out earlier.
Why A is wrong. 50 days counts only one eye, using 2 drops a day.
Why B is wrong. 100 days uses 1 drop a day.
Why D is wrong. 12 days uses 8 drops a day, counting each drop twice.
Topic: Days of supply of eye drops. Reference: Ansel HC. Pharmaceutical Calculations; Royal Pharmaceutical Society. Medicines, Ethics and Practice
Physician, EMREE exam
Question 5
Internal MedicineMedium
A 34-year-old woman has 6 months of fatigue, weight loss, salt craving and postural dizziness. She has pigmentation of her palmar creases and buccal mucosa. Lying blood pressure is 90/55 mmHg, sodium is 128 mmol/L, potassium is 5.6 mmol/L and glucose is 3.5 mmol/L. She is not in crisis. Which test best confirms the diagnosis?
AOption A: A random serum cortisol taken at 4 pm
BOption B: Short Synacthen (tetracosactide) test with plasma ACTH
COption C: Twenty-four-hour urinary free cortisol
DOption D: Overnight dexamethasone suppression test, which assesses suppression of cortisol secretion by the adrenal glands and pituitary
Show answer for question 5
Correct answer: B. Short Synacthen (tetracosactide) test with plasma ACTH
Hyperpigmentation, hypotension, hyponatraemia and hyperkalaemia indicate primary adrenal insufficiency, in which the high ACTH stimulates melanocytes and mineralocorticoid deficiency causes salt loss. The confirmatory test is the short Synacthen test, where the cortisol rises inadequately after tetracosactide, together with a raised plasma ACTH and renin, and adrenal antibodies are measured to look for autoimmune Addison disease. The dexamethasone suppression test and urinary cortisol screen for cortisol excess, and a random afternoon cortisol is not diagnostic. In a crisis, hydrocortisone is given without waiting for tests.
Why A is wrong. A single afternoon cortisol cannot separate normal from low reserve reliably.
Why C is wrong. Urinary free cortisol screens for excess cortisol and is not used to diagnose deficiency.
Why D is wrong. The dexamethasone test screens for Cushing syndrome, which is cortisol excess.
Topic: Endocrinology: confirming primary adrenal insufficiency. Reference: Endocrine Society clinical practice guideline: primary adrenal insufficiency (2016); Society for Endocrinology emergency guidance for adrenal crisis
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Frequently asked questions
No. They are original practice questions written by Meddex for exam preparation. DHA does not publish sample questions, and its Assessment Manual says sharing assessment questions is not allowed, so we do not use or claim real or recalled items.
The questions on these pages are free to read and answer, with no account and nothing to pay. They are a sample of the Meddex bank. The Starter plan, which is free, lets you practise more in the app.
No. A short set shows you the style and helps you spot gaps, but it does not cover every subject and it cannot predict a result. Practise across all subjects, review every explanation and check the official sources.
Start with the page for your own profession, then use the topic pages for the subjects you find hardest. Nurses and physicians have the largest question banks. Dentist and pharmacist sets are smaller, and EMREE is for physicians only.