Free DHA Clinical Pharmacy mock test
12 original exam-style questions from our Clinical Pharmacy bank, timed at the exam’s own pace, scored against the 70% DHA pass mark. They span 8 of the 9 blueprint domains, so you will see exactly where you are weakest - free, no sign-up.
Sit 12 original exam-style questions at real exam pace
These are 12 original questions taken from our Clinical Pharmacy bank, spread across 8 of the 9 domains of the published blueprint. You get 72 seconds per question, which is exactly the pace of the real PHO5482 exam (14 minutes for 12). At the end you will see which domains you are weakest in, and the full worked reasoning for every question.
- 12
- questions
- 14:24
- time limit
- 70%
- DHA pass mark
A short diagnostic cannot predict whether you will pass - only the real exam does that. It will show you, honestly, where you currently stand.
What the real Clinical Pharmacy licensing exam looks like
Candidates for a Clinical Pharmacy licence in the UAE sit a computer-based multiple-choice examination - DHA exam code PHO5482, delivered through Prometric for DHA, MOHAP and SHA, and through Pearson VUE for DOH Abu Dhabi. The DHA pass mark is 70% (DHA CBT Guideline, Sep 2026); other authorities set their own, so confirm yours before booking. The result is reported to you as pass or fail only - your score is never released.
Pass marks at a glance: DHA exam codes and pass marks for all written exams in one sourced table.
The paper is built to a published blueprint, which is why a domain-by-domain diagnostic is more useful than a raw percentage. Your questions above were drawn from across Cardiovascular Pharmacotherapy, Infectious Diseases and Antimicrobial Stewardship, Medication Safety, Evidence-Based Practice and Ethics, Oncology, Haematology and Anticoagulation and 4 more - the same areas the real paper weights.
Before you can book the exam at all you need Dataflow primary source verification of your degree, licence and experience, which typically runs several weeks. Candidates routinely underestimate this and end up sitting the exam sooner after study than they planned. Check where you stand with our free eligibility checker or confirm whether your title even requires an exam using the Prometric exam checker.
You get three attempts in total across all UAE authorities - not three each - under the Unified Professional Qualification Requirements. At roughly AED 880 per attempt, plus the licensing delay each failure adds to your visa and start date, the cost of going in underprepared is not really the exam fee.
What is on the Clinical Pharmacy exam: the full blueprint
The published blueprint splits into 9 domains and 57 testable sub-topics. The diagnostic above samples across them, which is why its breakdown maps onto the structure the real paper is built from.
- Cardiovascular Pharmacotherapy~15%7 topics
- Infectious Diseases and Antimicrobial Stewardship~15%8 topics
- Critical Care, Renal and Hepatic Considerations~12%6 topics
- Pharmacokinetics and Therapeutic Drug Monitoring~12%6 topics
- Endocrine, Respiratory and Gastrointestinal Pharmacotherapy~10%6 topics
- Oncology, Haematology and Anticoagulation~12%7 topics
- Neurology, Psychiatry and Pain~8%6 topics
- Special Populations~8%5 topics
- Medication Safety, Evidence-Based Practice and Ethics~8%6 topics
- Questions
- 150 multiple-choice (DHA PHO5482)
- Duration
- 3 hours, including registration
- DHA pass mark
- 70% - reported as pass or fail only
Figures for the DHA exam, from the DHA CBT Guideline, Sep 2026. DOH, MOHAP, SCFHS, QCHP, NHRA and OMSB set their own length, timing and pass mark. See the DHA exam guide and pass marks for every DHA exam.
A worked Clinical Pharmacy exam question
Every question in the diagnostic and in the paid bank is written to this standard: a clinical stem, four plausible options and the reasoning for the answer, with its source.
Cardiovascular Pharmacotherapy
A patient on simvastatin 40 mg daily is prescribed a 7-day course of clarithromycin. What is the most appropriate advice?
- AContinue simvastatin unchanged
- BDouble the simvastatin dose
- CSwitch simvastatin to ezetimibe permanently
- DWithhold simvastatin during the clarithromycin courseCorrect
Why: Clarithromycin is a strong CYP3A4 inhibitor that greatly increases simvastatin exposure and the risk of myopathy and rhabdomyolysis, so the statin should be withheld for the short course. Permanent switching is unnecessary because the interaction is temporary.
Source: BNF; Simvastatin Summary of Product Characteristics
Clinical Pharmacy sample questions with answers
4 more original exam-style Clinical Pharmacy questions, worked in full. They are not real or recalled exam questions, and none of them is in the diagnostic above, so sit that first if you have not.
Question 1 · Cardiovascular Pharmacotherapy
A patient with HFrEF taking ramipril 10 mg daily is to be switched to sacubitril/valsartan. What is the correct way to make the switch?
- AStop ramipril and wait at least 36 hours
- BStart sacubitril/valsartan the same day
- COverlap both drugs for 1 week
- DHalve ramipril and start sacubitril/valsartan
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: A. Stop ramipril and wait at least 36 hours
An ACE inhibitor must be stopped at least 36 hours before starting sacubitril/valsartan because combined ACE and neprilysin inhibition greatly increases the risk of angioedema. Any overlap of the two is contraindicated.
Reference: 2022 AHA/ACC/HFSA Guideline for the Management of Heart Failure
Question 2 · Endocrine, Respiratory and Gastrointestinal Pharmacotherapy
A 68-year-old with COPD on LABA/LAMA had two moderate exacerbations needing oral steroids in the past year. Blood eosinophils are 350 cells/microlitre. What is the most appropriate change?
- AAdd an inhaled corticosteroid (triple therapy)
- BStep down to LAMA monotherapy only
- CAdd daily azithromycin before any ICS
- DAdd regular low-dose oral prednisolone
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: A. Add an inhaled corticosteroid (triple therapy)
GOLD recommends escalating to LABA/LAMA/ICS when exacerbations occur on dual bronchodilators and eosinophils are 100 cells/microlitre or more, with the strongest benefit at 300 or more. Azithromycin is considered mainly when eosinophils are low, and long-term oral steroids are not recommended.
Reference: GOLD Global Strategy for COPD 2024 Report
Question 3 · Infectious Diseases and Antimicrobial Stewardship
A patient with MRSA bacteraemia is started on vancomycin. Using AUC-guided dosing, what is the recommended 24-hour AUC target assuming an MIC of 1 mg/L?
- A200-300 mg.h/L
- B400-600 mg.h/L
- C700-900 mg.h/L
- D1,000-1,200 mg.h/L
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: B. 400-600 mg.h/L
The 2020 consensus guideline recommends a target AUC/MIC of 400-600 for serious MRSA infections, preferably by Bayesian or two-level estimation. Higher exposures increase nephrotoxicity without improving efficacy, and trough-only monitoring is no longer recommended.
Reference: ASHP/IDSA/PIDS/SIDP Vancomycin Consensus Guideline 2020
Question 4 · Critical Care, Renal and Hepatic Considerations
An ICU patient needs light sedation for agitation while being weaned from the ventilator. Which property makes dexmedetomidine suitable?
- AIt is a GABA-A agonist with amnesic effects
- BIt provides sedation with minimal respiratory depression
- CIt has no effect on heart rate
- DIt is long-acting with a half-life of 2 days
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: B. It provides sedation with minimal respiratory depression
Dexmedetomidine is an alpha-2 agonist that produces cooperative sedation with minimal respiratory depression, which makes it useful during weaning. It commonly causes bradycardia and hypotension, and its half-life is about 2 hours.
Reference: SCCM PADIS Guideline 2018
How to use this diagnostic properly
- 1Sit it cold, once. Do not look anything up. A diagnostic you help yourself through tells you nothing. The number you get is only useful if it is honest.
- 2Read every rationale - especially the ones you got right. Getting a question right by elimination is not the same as knowing it. The worked reasoning is free above, whether or not you buy anything.
- 3Work weakest domain first. The breakdown orders your domains worst-first for exactly this reason. Studying what you are already good at feels productive and moves nothing.
- 4Re-sit under full exam conditions later. The real paper is far longer than this and stamina matters. Full-length timed papers are what the paid bank is for.