Candidate Pre-Application Information for Core Medical Training

What is Core Medical Training?

From August 2007, Core Medical Training (CMT) will be the first stage of training for trainees who wish to achieve a certificate of completion of training (CCT) in a Medical Specialty. The 26 Medical Specialties are listed on the JRCPTB website.

CMT has been designed to provide further generic training following Foundation. During this time trainees will have the opportunity to explore career choices and receive informed career guidance while expanding their knowledge of Medicine. Trainees completing CMT will have a solid platform in General Internal Medicine (Acute Medicine) from which they can continue into Specialty Training. Successful attainment of CMT competencies will be required in order to be eligible for entry into Specialty Training in any of the medical specialties.

Following CMT, trainees will have access to a very wide range of possible CCTs, with careers in areas such as Allergy, Clinical Genetics, Dermatology, Cardiology, Gastroenterology.

For trainees whose career intentions are focused on Neurology or connected disciplines (neurophysiology, rehabilitation, geriatrics), Basic Neuroscience Training (BNT) programmes will be available in some areas. Trainees intending a career in Acute Medicine may wish to undertake Acute Care Common Stem Training (ACCS) programmes, where they will train together with trainees in Critical Care and Emergency Medicine. BNT and ACCS (medicine) graduates can apply for entry to all of the 26 medical specialties and conversely CMT graduates will still have the option to apply for neurosciences and acute medicine training. Some CMT programmes may also give an enhanced specialty experience for trainees who are clear about their future career aspirations (eg CMT with a dermatology theme).

What Training will be delivered in CMT and how will you be assessed?

As a trainee in a CMT, a BNT or an ACCS programme, you will be expected to achieve the competencies described in level one of the new "Curriculum for General Internal Medicine (Acute Medicine)" and the Generic Curriculum for Medical Specialties available at
http://www.rcplondon.ac.uk/professional/gpt/

This new curriculum is based around the needs of medical patients who present as acutely ill and is a natural progression from Foundation training. You will gain skills and acquire the essential clinical and scientific knowledge required to deal with an increasingly complex and demanding range of medical problems. You will be assessed using an integrated suite of assessment tools currently under development by the Royal Colleges of Physicians. There will be assessments of your competence in the workplace together with formal examinations of competence to a national standard (MRCP UK Part 1).

What are the Challenges to CMT Trainees?

• You will need intellectual ability, a capacity for hard work under pressure, and excellent problem solving skills to achieve CMT competencies and to succeed in a career in a Medical Specialty.
• With 26 Specialties to choose from, career prospects are generally good but allocation to some popular specialties will involve a strong element of competition. You may need to be flexible in terms of career choice. The current expansion of the specialty of Acute Medicine will further enhance career prospects for CMT trainees

Why should you apply for Core Medical Training?

• You will have the benefit of a period of broad general training in a wide range of posts giving you further time to explore your talents and to make appropriate career choices.
• You will follow an exciting and demanding new curriculum designed to deliver skills and knowledge relevant to all doctors who may care for the acutely ill.
• When you complete CMT you will have access to a wider range of career possibilities than any other group of MMC trainees.

What role will the Royal Colleges of Physicians have in assisting with your training?

The Royal Colleges of Physicians will have an integral role in your training to become a Physician. They are responsible for the development and review of curricula, assessments and exams, the quality control of training (together with the Deans and PMETB), the organisation of a variety of teaching courses and enrolment with the Physicians Training Board. The Physicians Training Board will be responsible for monitoring the progress of trainees throughout their training and ultimately for recommending the award of a CCT to the PMETB.

Further Details

For further details of CMT programmes, and of the new approach to training in the Medical Specialties, consult the Training Tomorrows Physicians document available at http://www.rcplondon.ac.uk/professional/gpt/

General information about the Royal Colleges of Physicians:
RCP London http://www.rcplondon.ac.uk
RCP Edinburgh http://www.rcpe.ac.uk
RCPS Glasgow http://www.rcpsg.ac.uk
MMC http://www.mmc.nhs.uk/pages/home