Earlier this year, the Medical Training (Prioritisation) Bill was passed into law. Under the legislation, UK medical graduates, alongside other doctors with “significant NHS experience” are prioritised for specialty training places.
Professor Subodh Dave, President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, said:
“Psychiatry has been an under recruited and under resourced specialty for decades. We have needed every hand available and International Medical Graduates (IMGs) have played a key role in filling the gaps in our workforce. They continue to provide invaluable care and treatment as a vital part of the UK’s mental healthcare system.
“Increasing interest in psychiatry has led to steep competition for training places in recent years, and we continue to campaign for measures that ensure as many talented medical graduates can pursue a career in our specialty as is needed. The Medical Training (Prioritisation) Act was introduced to help UK medical students and foundation doctors secure training posts in the UK but IMGs who have “significant experience” of working for the NHS can also be prioritised for these positions. There are many views on what constitutes “significant experience” which the government is now considering.
“The College’s position is that two years of working in healthcare in the UK gives a commensurate level of experience to doctor’s foundation training. This gives IMGs adequate time to learn the inner workings of the NHS and recognises the important contributions they have already made to patient care. It is also consistent with the position of the Academy of Medical Royal College’s which states that it should be no less than two years and no more than three years.
“We will continue to focus on ensuring there is a clear path which supports all doctors to pursue a career in psychiatry and leads to a fulfilling position within the profession.”
For further information, please contact:
- Email: press@rcpsych.ac.uk
- Twitter: @rcpsych
- Out-of-hours contact number: 07860 755896