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UK IMG priority?

Seems that British Citizens abroad will be given SOME priority when it comes to ST in medicine, but none in foundation? So what's the point? This new bill is making no sense it seems

Reply 1

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Reply 2

Original post
by the_stu_DENT
Seems that British Citizens abroad will be given SOME priority when it comes to ST in medicine, but none in foundation? So what's the point? This new bill is making no sense it seems


The UK prioritisation, once the bill is passed, will effect uk graduates for 2026 UKFPO, as highlighted on the UKFPO website (please check this yourself to ensure)
For foundation training, the bill aims at ensuring that UK medical graduates will be assigned a foundation post first before the excess posts will be filled by IMG. This should reduce the amount of UK graduates being on placeholder positions and without securing a foundation place.
Obviously the bill has other uses within specialty training too, as to reduce the FY2 and beyond bottle neck that’s currently taking place.

Reply 3

Foundation places are not the emphasis for this new legislation. It's speciality training that is the emphasis.

PROVIDED a UK national who trained abroad (I.e. Bulgaria, etc) completes foundation, they will be given priority.

In future international graduates will not be able to apply for any speciality training unless they have indefinite leave to remain, which I understand is 5 years although there is talk of this being extended to 10 years, not sure if this would change to people working in healthcare.

The health secretary has stated his intention is to reduce competitions ratios to what they were previously. Any medical graduate anywhere in the world can apply for a GMC licence to practice (they need to sit PLAB exams first mind which makes them a major earner for the GMC as these exams are not free) so the tens of thousands joining the register doesn't necessarily mean they can automatically get a place and work in the UK.

The fact that any medical graduate in the world can sit the MSRA and then land a speciality training place with no interview and end up working in say psychiatry with neither any experience of working in the NHS nor any understanding of UK culture is/was absolutely bat-muck insane and I'll argue that with anyone all day long. Of all the specialties communication and cultural understanding in psychiatry is essential.

There are sizeable numbers of international medical students attending UK medical schools and they pay hefty tuition fees, too. By the time they complete F2 (as they are treated the same as anyone else for a foundation place) they will have a minimum of 7 years experience of UK culture and of the NHS, too. It is only right they are given equal access and priority to UK speciality programmes the same as anyone else.

Where you completed medical school is not a protected characteristic as far as I am aware and virtually every other country worldwide gives priority to their own graduates. If the BMA refuses to see sense on this issue you could understand why lots of people might choose to email them and cancel their membership.

This is your future at stake. You've signed up to medical school, jumped through the hurdles, made the commitment to serve the public good and it's wrong this ever happened. The Kings Fund indicates that it costs around 230K total to train a single UK medic so it makes sense to retain you all rather than encourage you to flock to Australia or North America.

An idiotic move by the prior Conservative government caused this and you should remember when it comes to the polls next time.

Reply 4

However, IMG's will now find it difficult to get foundation training whether UK citizens or not as all places are prioritised for uk TRAINED graduates.

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