Platform News: Q2 2026 — Free Exam Debrief and the 75-Patch May NICE Refresh
What's new for PLAB 1 candidates this quarter: the exam debrief is now free on every full 180-question mock (only the diagnostic recap costs a credit), and the May 2026 NICE refresh — six guidelines, 75 question and note patches — is already live across every affected MCQ and condition note in the bank.
What changed
- Free Exam Debrief on every mock — every full timed mock now ends with a free debrief: timing chart, error-pattern view, and your top 3 specialties to review. The diagnostic recap (the long-form, citation-grounded wrong-answer post-mortem) is the only part of the mock loop that uses a credit.
- May 2026 NICE refresh patched across the bank — six confirmed NICE refreshes (NG28, QS209, NG12, CG122, QS18, NG23) are already live in every affected condition note and MCQ explanation, in lockstep with each NICE update going live. 75 individual patches across question explanations and notes shipped in this batch. Full clinical breakdown in our May 2026 NICE Guideline Refresh article.
- Continuous patching cadence — when NICE updates a recommendation, the affected MCQ explanations and condition notes are now patched within days of the update going live, not held back for a quarterly content release. The 'last reviewed' date on every in-app note is the receipt for when it was last checked against current guidance.
Why it matters for your score
- Free debrief means there's no longer a paywall between sitting a mock and knowing which 3 specialties cost you marks. The mock loop is end-to-end free of friction; credits exist only for the deeper revision work, not for finding out where you stood.
- Continuous patching means revision time is never wasted on out-of-date pathways. A note marked 'last reviewed February 2026' reflects the diabetes update; a note marked 'April 2026' reflects the cancer-referral and menopause updates. There's no lag between the NICE change and the version you're revising from.
Practical checklist
- After your next full timed mock, open the free debrief first and write down your top 3 specialties before you spend a credit on the diagnostic recap.
- Open any condition note affected by the May 2026 refresh (diabetes, cancer referral, menopause) and check the 'last reviewed' date — anything dated February or April 2026 has been touched by the refresh.
- If your AKT or PLAB sitting is in May or June, prioritise the diabetes (NG28 / QS209) and cancer-referral (NG12) clusters before the menopause and insulin-shortage stems.
Common questions
Is the exam debrief actually free now? What's the catch?
The mock-end debrief is fully free — every timed mock ends with the timing chart, error-pattern view, and top 3 specialties to review at zero credit cost. The only paid part is the diagnostic recap (the long-form, citation-grounded wrong-answer post-mortem). Most candidates don't need a recap on every mock; they need a debrief on every mock, so the friction is now gone where it actually mattered.
What's in the May 2026 NICE refresh that's already in the bank?
Six confirmed NICE refreshes across two cluster dates: NG28 + QS209 (type 2 diabetes, 18 February 2026); NG12 + CG122 + QS18 (cancer referral, 15 April 2026); NG23 (menopause, 15 April 2026). 75 individual patches across MCQ explanations and condition notes were shipped in lockstep with each NICE update — full clinical breakdown is in our May 2026 NICE Guideline Refresh article.
How quickly does a NICE update reach my revision content?
Within days of NICE publishing the change. The MCQ explanations and condition notes for the affected pathway are patched, the 'last reviewed' date on every touched note is bumped to the publication date of the NICE update, and any stem whose correct answer changed is flagged in the explanation. There's no quarterly release cycle to wait for.
Will my old practice attempts still count after the patches?
Yes — your full attempt history and accuracy are preserved. The patches updated explanations and option grading where guidance changed but did not retire questions. If a stem's correct answer flipped because of the refresh, that's flagged in the explanation as a guideline change since your last attempt — so re-doing the question doesn't penalise your accuracy stats unfairly.
Has anything changed for free users in Q2 2026?
Yes — free users get the free debrief on the free questions and weekly rotation blocks, every refreshed condition note from the May 2026 NICE update, and every weekly question rotation. There's no new gating; the credit-paid diagnostic recap is the only premium part of the mock loop, exactly as in Q1.
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