How many pathologists are there in the uk

Figures are intended as a guide only. A working week usually comprises 40 hours, with hours generally between 9am and 6pm. However, depending on the trust you work for and your chosen specialty, you may have to work nights, weekends or be on call.

Most trainees at foundation, core and higher level will be expected to work on call. As a core and specialty trainee, you'll usually be employed on short-term contracts. To become a pathologist, you'll need to first complete a degree in medicine recognised by the General Medical Council GMC. This usually takes five to six years to complete, although if you've already got a degree in a subject other than medicine usually a or above in a science-related subject you can apply for a four-year accelerated graduate entry medicine programme also known as a graduate entry programme.

For a list of medical schools, see the Medical Schools Council. Your medical degree is followed by two years of Foundation Training, common to all medical graduates, where you work in a hospital as a junior doctor on a rotational basis in different departments, which may include a pathology specialty. After successful completion of the first year of Foundation Training, you can apply for full registration as a doctor with the GMC. For full details, see the UK Foundation Programme.

You will then undertake further core and specialty medical training usually a minimum of seven years in total to qualify in your chosen specialty. It's possible to apply for consultant posts six months prior to your completion date. For details on the qualifications and training required to be a doctor, see hospital doctor.

Before applying to do a medical degree you'll be expected to undertake work experience, either paid or voluntary, in areas relevant to medicine. This could be through work experience at your local hospital, nursing home or through work-shadowing a doctor. This experience shows your commitment to becoming a doctor and provides insight into the physical and emotional demands of working in medicine.

In addition, you could join a university pathology student society to keep informed about developments in the area. The Royal College of Pathologists also has social media threads that advertise training, opportunities, news or events, for example, The Royal College of Pathology annual summer school. These allow you to find out more about the different pathology specialties. During your two-year foundation training as a junior doctor, you can try to get onto a pathology rotation.

If that's not possible, you can talk to doctors in the pathology lab to arrange a taster session in a pathology specialty. This will give you a good insight into what the work involves. Find out more about the different kinds of work experience and internships that are available.

You can also work in the private sector. Once qualified, you'll be expected to continue learning throughout your career. CPD activities include attending courses, conferences, meetings and workshops, as well as undertaking research and peer-reviewing journal papers. Membership of the Pathological Society is also useful for keeping up to date with the latest research. Additional postgraduate qualifications can be useful but aren't essential. If you wish to integrate more formal teaching into your work, you can take the MMedSci Medical Education.

Search postgraduate courses in medical education. For many years, the pathology profession in the UK has regularly advocated for increasing the number of histopathologists trained each year by the medical schools in that country.

In July, the number of patients waiting for treatment longer than 60 days fell to The RCPath report highlights the intense pressures on histopathologists—most of whom working in understaffed laboratories—face from increased workloads, as new NHS cancer screening initiatives, an aging population, and a shift toward precision medicine result in a rising number of cases being referred to labs.

If this trend continues unchecked, clinical services could be in jeopardy. Making sure pathology services can cope with current and future demand is essential if we are to ensure early diagnosis and improve outcomes for patients. This is not the first time the alarm has been sounded in the UK over the lack of investment in trained pathologists along with a growing shortage of trained professional staff.

In , Dark Daily reported on calls by pathologists and other physicians for the UK government to increase funding for trained medical laboratory professionals to avert a predicted critical shortage in laboratory staffing within the next decade. In its most recent workforce report, The Royal College of Pathologists is reiterating its call for:. Long-term, the organization is calling for additional training slots for pathologists in universities as well as other changes to draw more scientists into the field.

The NHS has stopped short of declaring the pathologist shortage a crisis. Instead, a Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson in an interview with the BBC highlighted recent initiatives taken in response to the shortage. Despite those steps, the NHS may have more work to do. According to the Royal College of Pathologists workplace survey, a quarter of all histopathologists in the UK are 55 or older, adding an approaching retirement crisis to the existing shortage.

US anatomic pathology groups and clinical laboratories should monitor these events with a keen eye. In addition, you will not need to apply for a visa from the UK Home Office. Any international doctor, regardless of specialty, experience or country of origin, must demonstrate they have sufficient competence of the English language.

You can do this by passing either of the following:. IELTS — a guide for overseas doctors. OET — a guide for overseas doctors. Having passed your English Language Test, you can now apply for full registration with a licence to practice with the GMC.

For full GMC registration you must provide evidence of:. We recommend starting the job search as early as possible. At IMG Connect we specialise in securing jobs for European doctors in the UK and can offer you a wider range of pathology jobs than are readily available online.

Our network extends to Pathology services and HR departments across the UK, so no matter what your grade or specialty we can ensure you will be interviewing for roles well in advance of any relocation plans. In addition, your dedicated consultant, with a speciality knowledge of pathology, will negotiate on your behalf ensuring you get the most competitive salary.

Our aim is to have a job offer on the table before your GMC registration is complete, giving you the peace of mind of having an agreed contract in place - leaving you to carefully plan your relocation to the UK.

Take a look at our most recent jobs: Job Search. Once you have secured your role in the UK, we focus on supporting you and your family with all your relocation plans. Have a read through our IMG Library and take in all the beautifully organised information on relocation and UK life to immeasurably help your first days, weeks and months in the UK.

We've been keeping a close eye on policies and developments to ensure that we keep our doctors as up to date as possible. While we await more information from the UK Government about what our future relationship with Europe will look like, what is clear is that European doctors are most welcome in the NHS with or without Brexit.

In addition, you will need to apply for a visa from the UK Home Office. For pathologists this can be done through three main routes:. For this reason, PLAB tends to be a route for junior doctors who have not already chosen their field of specialisation in medicine. That said, for some senior doctors PLAB can be an attractive option, offering a quicker route to the UK, whilst still securing competitive salaries. If taking this option, pathologists can then take up training or a more senior post once they have established themselves in the NHS.

PLAB — a guide for overseas doctors. PLAB 1 — a closer look. PLAB 2 — a closer look.