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. 2023 Sep 4;15(9):e44640.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.44640. eCollection 2023 Sep.

Surgical Training in the United Kingdom's National Health Service: The Challenges for International Medical Graduates

Farid Gerges  1 , Reda H Mithany  2 , Mark Sidhom  3 , Ioannis N Gerogiannis  1
Affiliations

Surgical Training in the United Kingdom's National Health Service: The Challenges for International Medical Graduates

Farid Gerges et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Background: The UK's National Health Service (NHS) is a hub that trainees from all over the world want to join. However, there are many challenges for International Medical Graduates (IMGs). The aim of this study is to raise awareness of these challenges and to attempt to identify areas for improvement in the surgical training experience for international graduates wishing to join the NHS and obtain a National Training Number (NTN).

Methods: A 33-question survey was designed and distributed to the surgical community via The Upper Gastrointestinal Surgery Society (TUGSS) and social media. Eighty-five respondents, IMGs from 25 countries, participated.

Results: The results showed that 43.5% of doctors had a Master's degree (MSc). Most IMGs joined as locally employed doctors at the senior house officer or registrar level. They all faced many challenges in the UK, including difficulties finding a job in the NHS, obtaining an NTN, and adapting to the differences between UK surgical practice and their home country. More than 50% of doctors did not have a named educational/clinical supervisor, and 63.2% of them felt that the supervisor helped them to become more familiar with the system. The support doctors received from the human resources department of the hospital they joined was poor. In addition, more than half of the IMGs changed their career plans after joining the NHS (56.4%) and would like to stay in the UK (52.9%). The majority of them (43.9%) plan to obtain an NTN.

Conclusions: This study showed that there is a need to support international doctors who wish to start or continue their training in the UK. Furthermore, IMGs should expect to face several challenges when applying to work in the UK NHS.

Keywords: global healthcare system; international medical graduates; nhs; overseas doctors; surgical training.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Academic and surgical achievements before joining the NHS
NHS: National Health Service
Figure 2
Figure 2. Highest academic degree prior to joining the NHS
BSc: Bachelor of Science, MD: Doctor of Medicine, MSc: Master of Science, PhD: Doctor of Philosophy, PGCert: Postgraduate Certificate, PGDip: Postgraduate Diploma, NHS: National Health Service
Figure 3
Figure 3. Grade of the International Medical Graduates' first post in the NHS
NHS: National Health Service
Figure 4
Figure 4. Time spent on career planning
NHS: National Health Service
Figure 5
Figure 5. Support and information provided for trainees
NTN: National Training Number, HR: Human Resources, NHS: National Health Service
Figure 6
Figure 6. Sources of information for surgical training
Figure 7
Figure 7. Changing career plans after joining the NHS
NHS: National Health Service
Figure 8
Figure 8. Trainees' reflections on their satisfaction and skills after joining the NHS, using a scale from 1 to 100.
NHS: National Health Service
Figure 9
Figure 9. International Medical Graduates' future plans after joining the NHS
NHS: National Health Service
Figure 10
Figure 10. Doctors' plans in the event of a decision to stay in the UK long-term.
NTN: National Training Number
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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