Paediatrics?

Hi,
Does anyone know what qualifications you need to become a paediatrician? I.e. do you do a medical degree then a specialist post grad course?
Thanks.

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Reply 1

davros

I'm not an expert but I would think that initially you would study medicine and then specialise increasingly in paediatric aspects of it - there are various paediatric specialities just as there are for adults e.g. paediatric cardiology, paediatric neurology ,etc etc. Then I think you go through the "normal" post-grad medical training: house officer, senior HO, Specialist Registrar etc.

This is assuming you wanted to treat children from a medical perspective.

You could also start with a psychology degree and then do a master's or something to specialise in child clinical psychology or psychotherapy.

Hope this helps

Reply 2

Fluffy

davros

This is no longer the post qualification route as of this year. Visit the Modernising Medical Careers website for details of the new Foundation programme (replacing the PrHO and SHO year 1) and subsequent steps in continued education.

http://www.mmc.nhs.uk/

Reply 3

Fluffy

here's a brief bit of schpeal onm what happens after you've completed F1 and F2:

The proposals for the future shape of post-Foundation Programme training are outlined in The next steps:

Entry to specialist training will be by competitive process informed by evidence derived from the Foundation Programme and in some instances augmented by practical tests of skills and assessment of potential. Selection will begin before the completion of the Foundation Programme. However, standard specialist trainee job descriptions will apply. These will make plain that experience in a particular specialty at foundation level will not be a criterion for entry to a specialist training programme (for it may be that in some cases the best candidates may not have had the chance of a placement in the particular specialty where they have most potential).

Reply 4

*Laura*

Thanks for the help ppl. Please keep it simple as it's not for me and I don't know a lot about medicine courses. I'm a psychology student but am mentoring a year 11 who wants to go into paediatrics and I don't know too much about the area. Thanks x

Reply 5

Muse

*Laura*

To become a paediatrician it has always been the case to;

a) get into medical school

b) qualify as a medical doctor after 5/6 years at med school

C) work as a "pre-registration" doctor for a year doing general ward based work in medical and surgery wards.

d) apply for "senior house office" posts after the "pre-registration year". You have to spend at least 2 years as a SHO before you can think about specialising in paediatrics. SHO doctors rotate around the different specialities such as A&E, geriatrics etc. You choose a rotation which is more relevant to you, obviously if you wanted to become a paediatrician you'd do one of your SHO rotations in paediatrics (each rotation lasts 6 months).

e) after finishing your SHO years you can apply for "Registrar" posts. You have to complete membership examinations. At this point you begin your specialist training on the route to becomming a consultant paediatrician. Registrar posts in paediatrics are very competitive - they last for a minimum of 5 years before you can get your "certificate of completion of higher specialist training" this is the certificate you need to become a consultant paediatrician.

Of course, as Fluffy said, this is all about to change under the new foundation programme and revised 'Specialist Training' schemes.

If i was advising a year 11, i would explain the traditional system as above, because it involves roughly the same time frame as the new scheme and does give a good indication of all you have to go through before you can actually become a paediatrician.

Note, all of the above is only based on what i think and have read. This is related to the old scheme only and certain aspects will have changed.

Reply 6

anita_xx

There is no need for me to say anything more about the training pathways as TOYL and Fluffy have already explained everything excellently, but bear in mind that Paediatrics is one of the most competitive areas of medicine. At the moment a good 30-35% of my year are saying they want to be paediatricians - more than want to do any other medical speciality. So, just bear in mind that posts can be very competitive, particularly as you get more advanced (SpR/consultant level). I'm not saying don't do it, just that it is an important consideration.

Reply 7

idiopathic

But you don't even need to make the decision to become a paedriatician until graduating from medical school - and even then you have a few more years of clinical rotations before firmly deciding.

Just make sure the person is open minded about other possible careers.

Reply 8

Muse

anita_xx

So, just bear in mind that posts can be very competitive, particularly as you get more advanced (SpR/consultant level). I'm not saying don't do it, just that it is an important consideration.

I know, paediatrics seems VERY popular! It's quite sad to see that it's getting harder and harder to find would-be geriatric consultants though :frown:

Reply 9

Fluffy

timeofyourlife

It's quite sad to see that it's getting harder and harder to find would-be geriatric consultants though :frown:

Even with 'Ash Cash'?!! :wink:

Reply 10

Muse

Fluffy

Even with 'Ash Cash'?!! :wink:

Mocking isn't necessary, I was trying to be serious (!)

Reply 11

Fluffy

A friend did his medical rotation in Care of the Elderly, and 'Ash Cash' nearly made him jump ship from his dream of surgery!

PS - don't try doing serious again - it's scary! :wink:

Reply 12

Muse

On a completely unrelated, off-topic, irrelevant, inconsequential note...

surely posting the title of your DPhil thesis in your sig is merely going to make people ask; so....

What is the Role for the Stress-Activated Mitogen Activated Protein Kinase (SAPK) Pathway of Schizosaccharomyces pombe in the Cellular Response to Ionizing Radiation?

Edit: *sarcastic grin*

Reply 13

Fluffy

timeofyourlife

Damn! My thesis is too big to add as an attachment!

You can have the abstract though :wink:

my thesis!

ABSTRACT.
The Stress-Activated MAP Kinase (SAPK) pathway is a signalling cascade highly conserved through evolution. It comprises of a core of sequentially activated protein kinases, and functions to regulate both the cell cycle and gene expression in response to both environmental stresses such as oxidative stress, osmotic stress and thermal shock, and a number of DNA damaging agents for example ultra-violet (UV) light and methyl methanesulfonate (MMS). This study investigated the role of the SAPK pathway in response to the DNA damaging agents, ionizing radiation (IR) and the radiomimetic bleomycin, in the fission yeast.

This study shows that cells in which key components of the SAPK pathway have been disrupted exhibit sensitivity to both -rays and to the radiomimetic drug bleomycin and surprisingly, such sensitivity does not appear to be a result of oxidative stress. Instead, data presented indicate a role for the SAPK pathway in promoting efficient double-strand break (DSB) repair, with disruption of Sty1/Spc1 resulting in chronic DNA structure checkpoint-dependent cell cycle delay, and defective chromosomal repair following exposure to IR. Genetic analyses indicate that sty1/spc1 mutants share an epistatic relationship with components of the homologous recombination pathway. Finally, using a site-specific DSB response assay, this study has identified a role for Sty1/Spc1 in suppressing DSB-induced chromosomal rearrangements. These findings identify a novel role for the SAPK pathway in modulating DSB repair in fission yeast.

Availiable at all good Bodlean libraries :wink:

Another fine thread gone off at a tangent! Damn medics!

Reply 14

Muse

Fluffy

Damn! My thesis is too big to add as an attachment!

You can have the abstract though :wink:

You've just emphasised the fact that I know sweet FA about biochemistry and genetics. Although, I think I'm going to have dreams about the SAPK pathway now :redface:

I may buy your thesis when everyone else is buying the new harry potter book !! It's an incentive for a brilliant summer :hello:

Fluffy

Another fine thread gone off at a tangent! Damn medics!

I spent at least 5 minutes writing a decent-ish reply to this thread, I own the off-topicness.

Reply 15

Fluffy

timeofyourlife

I may buy your thesis when everyone else is buying the new harry potter book !! It's an incentive for a brilliant summer :hello:

It's good for insomnia! In fact I may have a flick through it now in a bid to try to feel tired enough to go to bed!

Reply 16

Muse

Fluffy

It's good for insomnia! In fact I may have a flick through it now in a bid to try to feel tired enough to go to bed!

I've got the same problem. Will you read it out aloud? Although, leave out the risque paragraphs which may not be suitable for an under-21 audience.

Reply 17

Fluffy

timeofyourlife

I've got the same problem. Will you read it out aloud? Although, leave out the risque paragraphs which may not be suitable for an under-21 audience.

1.1 GENERAL INTRODUCTION.

The focus of this thesis was to consider the role for the stress-activated Mitogen Activated Protein Kinase (SAPK/stress-activated MAPK) pathway in the cellular response to DNA damage induced by ionising radiation (IR), of the fission yeast, Schizosaccharomyces pombe (S. pombe). The introduction to this study therefore concentrates on two main areas: the MAPK pathways and the major DNA repair pathways of mammalian systems and two model organisms, the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae (S. cerevisiae), and S. pombe. The genes and proteins that comprise each pathway will be introduced and their functions compared across species. Also considered will be the DNA structure checkpoints, concentrating on the fission yeast replication and DNA damage response pathways.

1.2 DNA DAMAGE

DNA damage induced by ionising radiation leads to single-strand breaks (SSBs), base modifications and double-strand breaks (DSBs). One of the hallmarks of ionising radiation-induced DNA damage is the production of clustered DNA damages, also known as multiply damaged sites (MDS), as predicted from biophysical modelling (reviewed in Goodhead, 1994). The complexity of DNA damage induced by ionising radiation is thought to be due to the formation of clustered DNA lesions containing different numbers of elemental lesions, with clustered DNA damage being defined as a damaged site containing two or more lesions within close proximity within DNA by a single radiation track (Ward, 1994; Goodhead, 1994). Common base modifications found within complex areas of damage include the mutagenic lesion 8-oxo-7,8-dihydroguanine, thymine glycols, Fpg-sensitive sites, DNA-protein crosslinks and endonuclease III sensitive sites (Jenner et al., 2001). In biological terms, a simple clustered lesion might consist of two closely associated lesions, whereas a more complex clustered lesion may consist of three or more lesions. It is thought that clustered lesions can inhibit DNA repair processes and can additionally lead to the production of further DSBs when repair occurs (David-Cordonnier et al., 2000; 2001a; 2001b; Weinfeld 2001; Dianov et al. 2001; Lomax et al. 2002).

The formation of DNA DSBs, if left unrepaired, are thought to be one of the major types of damage which threaten chromosomal fidelity and, ultimately, the fate of the cell and can contribute to tumourigenesis (Russell, 1998). DNA DSBs are considered critical primary lesions in the formation of chromosomal aberrZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz