Prometric exam calculation questions: where each Gulf outline names them, with worked examples
Practise the maths named in your paper’s outline. Keep units at each step and round at the end. This is ProMCQ’s suggested method.
Facts last verified 5 October 2026. Updated 6 October 2026.
Calculation topics by paper
| Paper | Calculation detail | Profession page |
|---|---|---|
| DHA pharmacist | Calculation and compounding; pharmacokinetics. The guideline gives no separate weight. | DHA pharmacist |
| DHA Pharmacy Technician | Separate “Pharmacy Calculation” entry; the guideline gives no weight. | Choose the right title |
| SPLE | Calculations sit inside pharmaceutical and clinical sciences, each 35%. Those are whole-domain weights. | SPLE |
| SMLE | Disease frequency and excess risk calculations; no separate weight. | SMLE |
| SNLE | Pharmacology is named; dosage calculations are not listed separately. | SNLE |
| OMSB pharmacist | Pharmaceutical calculations: 15%, with category variation of up to 5% either way. | OMSB pharmacist |
| Qatar pharmacist | Pharmaceutical Sciences: 38 questions; Clinical Sciences: 67 of 150. No separate calculation weight. | Qatar pharmacist |
| Kuwait nurse | Pharmacology: 6 items. The blueprint does not label them calculations. | Kuwait nurse |
| DOH, MOHAP, NHRA | We did not find an official calculation outline. | Find your paper |
Worked examples
ProMCQ wrote these examples. The doses are part of each question. They are not advice on what to prescribe. Work each answer back to check it.
| Example | Working and check |
|---|---|
| 1. Paediatric dose by weight | An 18 kg child is prescribed amoxicillin 40 mg/kg/day in 2 divided doses. The suspension is 250 mg/5 mL. Daily dose: 40 mg/kg/day × 18 kg = 720 mg/day. Per dose: 720 mg ÷ 2 = 360 mg. Concentration: 250 mg ÷ 5 mL = 50 mg/mL. Answer: 360 mg ÷ 50 mg/mL = 7.2 mL per dose. |
| Continued | Check: 7.2 mL × 50 mg/mL × 2 ÷ 18 kg = 40 mg/kg/day. |
| 2. Gravity infusion | 1,000 mL of sodium chloride 0.9% runs over 8 hours. The giving set is 20 drops/mL. Rate: 1,000 mL ÷ 8 h = 125 mL/h. Drops: 125 mL/h × 20 drops/mL ÷ 60 min/h = 41.67. You cannot split a drop, so give 42 drops/min. Check: 42 × 60 ÷ 20 = 126 mL/h. That is within rounding of 125. |
| 3. Dose-based infusion | Dopamine 5 mcg/kg/min for a 70 kg adult, from 400 mg in 250 mL. Concentration: 400 mg ÷ 250 mL = 1.6 mg/mL. That is 1,600 mcg/mL. Dose: 5 mcg/kg/min × 70 kg = 350 mcg/min. Per hour: 350 × 60 = 21,000 mcg/h. Answer: 21,000 ÷ 1,600 = 13.125. |
| Continued | On a pump set to one decimal place, that is 13.1 mL/h. Check: 13.1 × 1,600 ÷ 60 ÷ 70 = 4.99 mcg/kg/min. |
| 4. Dilution | Make 500 mL of 10% dextrose from 50% dextrose and water for injection. C1V1 = C2V2 gives 50% × V1 = 10% × 500 mL. So V1 = 100 mL of 50% dextrose. Make it up with 400 mL of water. Check: 50% w/v is 50 g per 100 mL, so 100 mL holds 50 g. And 50 g in 500 mL is 10 g per 100 mL. |
| 5. Alligation | Prepare 60 g of 1% hydrocortisone ointment from 2.5% and 0.5% ointments. Parts of the 2.5%: 1 − 0.5 = 0.5. Parts of the 0.5%: 2.5 − 1 = 1.5. That makes 2 parts in all. So you need 60 g × 0.5 ÷ 2 = 15 g of 2.5%. And you need 60 g × 1.5 ÷ 2 = 45 g of 0.5%. |
| Continued | Check: 0.375 g + 0.225 g = 0.6 g of hydrocortisone in 60 g. That is 1%. |
| 6. Half-life and loading dose | After an IV dose, plasma concentration falls from 40 mg/L to 10 mg/L in 12 hours (first-order). That is two halvings in 12 hours, so the half-life is 6 hours. Check by formula: k = ln(40 ÷ 10) ÷ 12 h = 0.1155 per hour. Then t½ = 0.693 ÷ 0.1155 = 6.0 h. |
| Continued | Loading dose for 10 mg/L in a 70 kg patient with Vd 0.5 L/kg: 10 mg/L × 35 L = 350 mg. Units: mg/L × L leaves mg. |
| 7. Relative and excess risk | Over 5 years, 30 of 1,000 smokers and 10 of 1,000 non-smokers develop a disease. Risks: 0.03 and 0.01. Relative risk: 0.03 ÷ 0.01 = 3. Excess risk: 0.03 − 0.01 = 0.02. That is 20 extra cases per 1,000 over 5 years. Number needed to harm: 1 ÷ 0.02 = 50. Check: 50 × 0.02 = 1 extra case. |
Check equations and tools
The OMSB pharmacist booklet prints suggested equations. It does not say you get them in the exam. Learn them before you sit the paper.
Sample 4 gives 23.3 hours for the drug’s half-life. Sample 7’s QALY-per-OMR answer conflicts with its table. Use the table to work it out.
DOH confirms a standard calculator on screen. It gives no handheld calculator or paper. The SNLE gives writing surfaces and markers. For other papers, check the rules and practise by hand.
Check units before selecting an answer
- Use the unit in the answer options. 1 mg equals 1,000 mcg.
- Check if the dose is for a day or for each time you give it.
- Change hours to minutes if the question asks for drops per minute.
- For dilution, keep the stock volume and final volume separate.
- Match each strength to the right parts when mixing. Use the natural log where the equation needs it.