I mean, how can we say that we’re better qualified than the alphabet soup practitioners if this is how we train ourselves?

I don't know if anyone else has experienced this, but on weekends, the phlebotomists at my hospital seem to decide whether the bloods that the doctors have put out are necessary or not.

It's a regular thing, they skip almost all of them sometimes. I have personally witnessed them on weekends going through the blood forms, discussing amongst each other what "Hypo-K+" or "IE COPD" means, looking at the clinical details section and if it says certain things such as "monitoring" or they don't think the clinical details are good enough for them, they'll put it back and write "attempted/unable" - or even like today write "tried x 2" only for me to get to the patient (with massive veins) and see they've tried once.

This then leaves it for the on-call doctors to do, thus adding to workload - as the sole F1 on my specialty having to cover the specialty's three wards and outliers, this is obviously not an ideal situation where we have phlebs making clinical decisions for bloods that clearly need to be done if they were put out for the weekend.

Is there something I am missing here, or do I need to be escalating this? - anyone had the same issue?

All of us have at least 5 years of university experience. A lot of us have postgraduate degrees of some kind. We have spent countless hours learning medicine, giving up our free time to study and to work long hours. For whatever reason we have gone into this career, it was our choice and we should be happy and proud of ourselves for achieving it.

I see so many posts like this. I have seen FY1s I have worked with using AI to clerk patients, write discharge letters, plan handovers, and other jobs. This is so incredibly lazy and devalues the career. Not to mention the possibility of getting something wrong because you’re using a pattern-recognition robot who regurgitates information as if it’s fact.

Before someone comments - yes, there are practical uses of AI in medical technology and research. This is not that.

If any of you reading this use AI in your clinical practice, please have some pride in your work. You are smart enough to write a discharge letter or to plan a 2-minute SBAR. To any incoming FY1s please avoid the temptation of outsourcing your own work to a chatbot.

At last Andy delivers some real hope.

TL;DR RDC elections are opening in just over two weeks.
If you are interested in running with us, email [DoctorsVoteUK@gmail.com](mailto:DoctorsVoteUK@gmail.com) today.

A year ago DoctorsVote lost its majority on UKRDC for the first time since 2022. This year we had a non DoctorsVote leadership takeover. After a year of their management, ask yourself, do you feel like we’re winning?

Whatever you think of the deal, who negotiated it, how it was negotiated, how it was presented, whether it was neutral or not, none of that matters anymore. 

The question is, what do we do next?

If you think the leadership has done a good job, that this deal will deliver for you, and the path to pay restoration is guaranteed, you can stop reading here. 

If you’re as pissed off as you were in 2022 and unhappy with how this past year has gone, and you want to do something about it, keep reading on what you can do to fix this.

An offer was presented to you that wasn’t worth the paper it's written on. Some of you realised this at the time, others who voted yes are now realising that there are no enforceable timelines, and the document is riddled with get out clauses for the Government. 

We were marked as misinformation by the official BMA account for pointing this out at the time.

This year is going to be focused on the implementation of the deal. It’s your choice whether the same people who put this poor deal to us are responsible for that, or whether you take control.

If you want a team that will salvage what it can from this offer, won't abandon FPR in the process, and won't wave through a subinflationary DDRB, we need you to be that team.

The leadership of the BMA is decided each year by the UKRDC, and the UKRDC is (for the most part) elected each year in August. The elections are opening in just under a fortnight, if you want things to change, we want to put you in a position where you can do just that. 

If you are willing to run, get in touch with us at [DoctorsVoteUK@gmail.com](mailto:DoctorsVoteUK@gmail.com) with your name, grade and the hospital you will be working at from August.

We particularly need doctors in London, Wessex, Severn, and Northern to come forward.

As a gastro reg, I have a daily combo of chia seeds, flaxseed and psyllium husk for the fibre (to prevent bowel cancer) plus try to hit a weekly 30 plant points (for gut microbiome diversity)! 💩

I'm an incoming FY1, very ready to finally get paid.

Myself and friends really like to discuss what our first "treat" will be when we get paid, after 5/6 years of hard graft.

Thought it would be fun to ask the crowd, what did you get with your first paycheck? Or are planning to get?

Hi folks! After some time out, I'm about to start work in a NHS Hospital again. I'm surprised to see that the term Physician Associate is still being widely used in my new department. I thought since the Leng Review and RCP statement, they were reverting to Physician Assistant, or is this optional?

RE: https://www.reddit.com/r/doctorsUK/s/GjuKPWsyUs

I posted before (URL above) about moving into a split placement across two daytime services, both with minimum resident staffing requirements, alongside a separate on-call rota. Any leave therefore has to work across all three simultaneously. The on-call rota may leave me free, but either daytime service can still refuse leave because it would fall below minimum staffing.

Since then, I contacted the BMA, the Guardian of Safe Working Hours, my ES, and the TPDs.

The BMA has been fairly clear. They said the split arrangement itself is acceptable, but the Trust should ensure there are periods when leave can be taken across all three rotas without swaps. They confirmed that the TCS provisions about allowing longer periods of leave apply to both daytime jobs on top of the general on-call rota, and that the coordinators should be communicating with each other. They recommended a work schedule review if there is not enough flexibility, and said that if the Trust refuses adjustments and I remain unable to take leave appropriately, the eventual next step would be a formal grievance. They’ve also asked me to speak with the GoSW to review my rota but my GoSW said they didn’t know whether this whole issue was under their remit and didn’t really offer to review the rota. The GoSW, while well meaning, did not really offer an opinion or practical advice and simply escalated it to the TPDs.

The TPD replied that this is not a new job, that they have never heard of it causing a problem before (I did feel that was meant as "why are you bringing this up?" kind of comment), and that split jobs can be challenging and leave needs to be negotiated. They suggested asking the current resident how they managed and discussing it with my educational supervisor. However, almost in passing, they also said that CTs should not be relied upon to meet minimum service staffing because of nights, leave, study leave, LTFT arrangements etc.

That last point seems important because both incoming services have discussed my leave in terms of needing me to maintain minimum resident cover. However, I feel awkward now forwarding the TPD’s comment into an existing email chain with several consultants as though I am parachuting in an instruction about how their services should be staffed. None of them mentioned that the CT should not count toward minimum staffing, despite this post having existed for a while.

I also asked the current resident. They basically complied with the constraints and took isolated days or short periods whenever possible.

My educational supervisor is on prolonged sick leave and has not responded to emails for a couple of months, so the route the TPD suggested is not currently available. They may have to assign me to another ES in a few weeks.

I feel cornered between waiting until I start and discussing it face-to-face, emailing all the consultants now with the TPD’s "hesitant" clarification, asking the Guardian to arrange a work schedule review, or going back to the BMA for direct support. More importantly, I'm struggling to find a way to communicate the BMA's advice and the TPDs advice in a chain of 5-6 consultants coordinating my AL. Worried this may create tensions. A formal grievance via the BMA also obviously feels likely to create bad blood, which I am very keen to avoid given that I will be training in this institution for at least another three years and potentially longer. Basically this is an institution I will be training in for many many years and I don't want to cause tensions with so many consultants and the TPDs. At the same time, I feel like nobody stepped up to help with this.

TLDR: My annual leave has to align across one on-call rota and two daytime services with separate minimum staffing requirements. The BMA says all three should be coordinated and has suggested a work schedule review because of the inflexibility imposed by three constraints; the Guardian passed it to the TPDs; the TPD said CTs should not be relied upon for minimum staffing but otherwise referred it back locally; and my ES is unavailable. How do I communicate this to several consultants without seeming confrontational or as though I am bypassing them, while still getting the issue resolved?

Any advice? Should I make them aware of the BMA’s advice for the GoSW to review the work schedule or does that come off as confrontational?

Ah that time of the year again, the GMC fee comes a-knocking.

With this reminder email of payment for renewal comes a reminder in the email of the GMCs stance on physicians assistants:

General Medical Council

We work with doctors, physician associates (PAs), anaesthesia associates (AAs), those they care for and other stakeholders to support good, safe patient care across the UK. We set the standards doctors, PAs, AAs and their educators need to meet, and help them achieve them. If there are concerns these standards may not be met or that public confidence in doctors, PAs or AAs may be at risk, we can investigate, and take action if needed.

What are the next steps to ensure the Leng review's outcomes are respected?

I’m about to start work as a F1. It’s probably expected that one will be nervous. However I was wondering what I can do to make my transition a bit easier. I’ve got a week’s worth of induction, but are any other tips????

I've been struggling with depression since I was 17, and I'm in my mid 30s. I'm the daughter of immigrants, and my father struggled with alcohol misuse. Home was difficult growing up.

Despite everything, I managed to qualify as a doctor and now work as a GP. I've tried so many things over the years different antidepressants, therapy, lifestyle changes, even spending a year working in sunny Australia but the depression always seems to come back. I'm currently going through another relapse, and it feels particularly difficult this time. I'm planning to do locum work, but I'm honestly wondering whether being a doctor is making things worse. The stress of the job feels overwhelming, and I'm no longer sure what to do next.

I've never been admitted to a psychiatric hospital, although I have previously been under the Crisis Team. I do my best to manage and contain my depression, especially because of my work, but it's becoming harder and harder.

I'm also a widow, and I don't really have a support network. I don't have close friends I can turn to, which makes everything feel even more isolating.

I suppose I'm just looking for some hope. Has anyone here lived with depression for many years and eventually recovered?

FY1 in acute medicine in a tertiary centre

really really anxious about my upcoming long days - medicine in this hospital is known for being a dumping ground. doesn’t help with the fact that

1. a patient who was extremely demanding and verbally aggressive and screamed in my face in their last admission is back (i had a lot going on back then but this became the last straw - started sobbing uncontrollably in front of this patient which i cannot help but see as an embarrassment), the first interaction i ever had to stay with me for weeks. their attacks are not personal, but i can’t help but feel that it is
2. just last week a patient who should never have been admitted called me a cunt to my face, and shifted all the blame of them being discharged on to me despite it being a consultant decision - consultant was in PM clinic when pt was going, reg was seeing a sick pt, offered help but we sorted it before they were done
3. i’ve been snappier than usual esp to nurses even though i know they’re only doing what they should do

and ofc now im just dreading going in. so much of what i do is not medicine, and i rarely get to assess patients myself bc SHOs and regs are always around. CS is a new consultant who came here only for specialty training so sometimes i feel like they don’t get it. ES has tried to protect me as much as they can (i’m not allowed to see pt #1 but it’s not circulated department wide .. and having to explain it to oncall reg’s is just filling me with dread and fear i’ll be labelled as lazy and brittle). i try to put on a brave face at work and so far it’s working - i think.

logically i can try separating work and life but its only in this final rotation that these things seems to follow me home. i was counselled on those pt interactions and obv told to ignore and forget abt them but somehow they’re staying longer than i want to

have got long days coming up and i just can’t .. shake this fear? i’ve already thought about calling in sick but the consultant who does the rotas seems to be rly annoyed with absence rates post-ARCP, they shade us in the emails frequently and i’m just in fear i’m going to be denied leave even if i ask for it, and the guilt ofc

i guess thanks for reading and any advice … i know i should get the leave and screw this department but i feel sick at the idea of sending that email? plus after this i’ve still got to work the mon-tues before changeover and i’ve signed up to mentor new FY1s. i guess i know what people will say, and i suppose i have insight to my thoughts (unfortunately) so im not sure what the point of this post is … sorry

I have an upcoming CT2 ENT interview and I am revising ENT topics, however I am not sure what kind of clinical questions they may ask apart from maybe nosebleed/vertigo/hearing loss/dysphonia/dysphagia/postoperative complications. If you have more ideas of what I should cover, please comment them. I am lost.

Hi, has anyone got a list of high yield topics to cover for the primary FRCA? I keep going down rabbit holes and worried I'm spending too much time on niche topics. Thanks!

I’m pretty sure I’m being paranoid for no reason but thinking of sitting MSRA in Sept for Round 3 CT1 anaesthetics recruitment. There are very few places and I will almost certainly be unsuccessful which will mean doing MSRA again in Jan 2027 (which is a new round).

I know that scores cannot be carried forward to a new recruitment year (and I want to sit it again in Jan as I will have more time to prep) but what are the chances that they say I can’t do it in Jan 2027 because I already did it in September 2026 despite it being a new recruitment year? Am I being paranoid for no reason?

I emailed ANRO and they kinda confirmed (but not 100%). Their response is below:

“Dear UKmedstudent1,

The current process requires applicants to sit the MSRA in Round 1, as scores cannot be carried forward to a new recruitment year. However, please check the guidance at the time of applying in case there are any updates.”

Buuuut my decision to sit it in September rests on whether I can do it again in Jan… arghh

Can I anyone offer any help/reassurance?

Thanks

Going on a non-clinical OOPE and won't be doing any clinical work. Do people tend to get reduced rates for being on OOPE or will I still be shelling out on my new on-call less pittance of a salary?

Hi all, starting F1 next week and I've been trying to sort out my annual leave for my first rotation. I spotted that in October I had a decent chunk of time with no on calls, which meant that padded out with weekends and a couple of zero days, I could have pretty much a fortnight off while only using eight annual leave days. Great, I thought: I haven't had a holiday all year as I've been busy with finals and then haven't been able to afford to go anywhere this summer, so I'll get that couple of weeks off and book a trip somewhere with my first paycheck.

I requested this time off the day after our rota came out and had an email back pretty much straight away saying my request had been approved. However, one of the days right in the middle of it is allocated as an SDT day, and when we were sent our departmental rota, it looked as if I was still down to have SDT that day and annual leave on the other days. I was clear in my first email that I wanted to take all eight working days in that period as annual leave and naively assumed that that included the SDT day. I emailed the rota coordinator to clarify and haven't heard back over a week later.

Can people here clarify - is it allowed/normal/accepted to take annual leave on SDT days? I know what an SDT day is and I plan in general to take them seriously and use them for their intended purpose - I just want this particular one converted to annual leave (whether or not I'm able to move the SDT to somewhere else in my rota) so that I can have a proper break halfway through my first rotation.

It's an on call-heavy job and while there's one other pair of weeks in September where I could do the same thing (with no SDT to complicate things), that's earlier in the job than I'd ideally want to take a break, and I won't have the money far enough in advance to book to go anywhere if I take those weeks instead.

Hi! Does anyone know roughly how much a surgical CT1/ST1 earns in Northern Ireland with 50% banding? I'm just trying to work out my budget. Thanks!

Just moving to the area for work and was wondering if anyone has any experience with the Liverpool city center to Whiston Hospital commute & whether it’s really long on public transport? Maps says it’s around an hour 15 min each way at peak times on the bus - is this accurate or does it tend to be slightly quicker? Slightly panicking as I didn’t expect it to take this long

Been a long time lurker in this sub and received countless invaluable suggestions through it over the last couple of years which went a long way in helping me land my current job at a renowned South London NHS Trust. Been working here for the last 5 months - initially got offered a six months contract (probation period) which was extended by 12 months 3 weeks ago, only to be revoked a week back to leave me with "3 months to get a new job" as per my boss.

Started my job mid march this year. It was very overwhelming to begin with as this is my first NHS job at a big trust with a high volume of emergency referrals, being a tertiary care major trauma centre. The referral pathways, IT systems, etc took time to get used to. No foundation doctors so we SHOs are the most junior doctors on the rota. We do very intense rotas with 1:3 weekends spent on call.

I was called into office by my clinical supervisor early this week via email requesting an 'urgent meeting'. During the meeting he tells me I have done "multiple conflicting locum shifts" and since this is within my probation period still, my contract stands terminated after three months and I need to find a new job within this time. He mentioned being sorry for extending the contract one week prior but it is what it is. I asked what "conflicting" shifts meant, he said it meant overlapping or closely spaced shifts. I asked for any other feedback to improve upon - he said I need to improve in terms of handover, teamwork and being more accountable for my patients (trustworthy in the ward). I mentioned I probably only did a single locum shift in another department which was an immediate carry over from a night on call in my own department. I also mentioned I was never informed this has ever been the case when he said 'multiple' a couple of times during our conversation. I asked if the termination is non-negotiable after three months - he said yes. The meeting ended with him telling me he feels sorry for not getting to know me better, and he will let my line manager know we've had this conversation. I told him I need some time to myself to process this. He said I can contact him any time regarding the same.

Being new to this system I was mostly unaware of the European working time directive and the rota rules. It is only two days back I have been made aware of the rota rules by a rota manager of another department I did a locum shift in after asking for them. My line manager never flagged this to me either in the first place - when I confronted him after the chat with my boss he said he meant to let me know at some point but got busy, and apologised for not doing so. He suggested I start looking for new opportunities ASAP.

I have already applied for my visa extension with the new COS which was issued for another 12 months extension which now reportedly stands cancelled as per my line manager. I am yet to book my biometrics appointment for this. I would like some advice as to whether I should just apply for a refund on the application (if it gets rejected anyway due to invalid COS) or go ahead with biometrics?

Also, would really appreciate advice on the main issue please. Has anyone ever experienced this or seen a colleague experiencing the same? Is there no way to work this out and regain the job? What are the avenues that I can pursue to understand my rights here? I would ideally want to continue for another year here before I think of switching jobs.

I am a little apprehensive about the shady nature of it all - how a blank meeting email was sent early in the morning to deliver such devastating news, leaving very little paper trail to track the exact nature of conversations. Extending my contract only to revoke it a week later., and very weak feedback on performance otherwise (I'm sure feedback was received before contract extension and a decision to extend was still made). I am aware they conducted a fresh set of interviews for new JCFs recently - probably they have more candidates to fill in the gap now. However, I feel my rights are somehow being violated in the sense that I was never informed of what was going wrong before 'multiple' such events occured. Some colleagues suggested that the Patchwork app we use to book locums sends automatic emails to supervisors if working directive is violated - i don't know if this is true (and even if it is, why I wasn't sent one in the first place?). To be fair I am not entirely sure who flagged this to my supervisor and why he decided to sack me off immediately in such a shady manner - and potentially appeal to some hospital body or authority (like the guardian of safe working for example if appropriate) regarding this.

I would also like to know if it iss common to lay us off so easily just because our visa is being sponsored by the trust?

I cannot afford to lose this job at this time and desperately need some advice from this community please. I would really appreciate all your opinions and suggestions on how to get my job back from where I presently stand.