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• General practice doctor: Training

General practice doctor: Training

The structure of doctors’ training has recently been changed following the introduction of the Modernising Medical Careers (MMC)  plan. Full information on training, application for training, and qualification in England are available from Foundation Programme  for Foundation training and the MMC website for specialty training (or see Scottish Medical Training (SMT) , Modernising Medical Careers in Wales  and Northern Ireland Medical and Dental Training Agency (NIMDTA)  for details of training in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland). Briefly, all UK medical graduates are required to undertake a two-year postgraduate foundation programme before progressing to GP training. Foundation training covers a variety of specialties and settings (e.g., acute, community, mental health and general practice) and is provided, supported and overseen by a Foundation School comprised of medical schools, postgraduate deaneries and health care providers working in liaison.

In December of their second foundation year, trainees can apply for a place on a GP training programme via the National Recruitment Office for General Practice Training , which co-ordinates recruitment to general practice training schemes throughout England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Successful candidates can start on the programme straight after the end of their second foundation year in August. A comprehensive list of application deadlines is available on the website.

The GP training programme takes three years and involves placements lasting for 18-24 months in a hospital setting and 12-18 months in a general practice depending where you are in the UK. The programmes are based on the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP)  training curriculum. Doctors are awarded a Certificate of Completion of Training (CCT), subject to satisfactory progress and success in the examinations for Membership of the RCGP (MRCGP), which cover three areas: a knowledge test, a clinical skills assessment and work place based assessment carried out during the training placements. Doctors with the CCT are legally eligible for entry to the GP Register and can then apply for appropriate medical appointments.

Flexible training is possible for those who have well-founded individual reasons, such as domestic commitments, disability or ill health. You can make an application for flexible training only after you have been accepted for a training post. There is no guarantee that there will be sufficient places for all who request flexible training.

On completion of training, most GPs join existing practices, either as principals (having responsibility for a given patient list) or as non-principals (who provide a service, but do not have responsibility for a patient list). All GPs must have a continuing professional development (CPD) plan, which is monitored through an annual appraisal and a five-yearly process of 'revalidation', which requires doctors to demonstrate their fitness to practise. The General Medical Council (GMC)   requires doctors to keep their knowledge and skills up to date throughout their working life and regularly take part in educational activities to further develop competence and performance.

CPD programmes should reflect personal interests and can be supported by a range of practical frameworks, such as additional study, peer review, mentoring skills and appraisals. Many doctors attend external events as part of this process, while others conduct individual research to expand career interests.

AGCAS

Written by Christine Waddelove, The University of Liverpool

Last updated:

October 2009

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