RCPI is pleased to announce the introduction of a new postgraduate medical training programme. The Registrar Training Programme (RTP) is being introduced to address the needs of registrars in Irish hospitals who wish to pursue specialist training.
RTP will be introduced as a one-year programme on a pilot basis on 1st July 2010. During this pilot phase, RTP will undergo continuous review, with a view to extending the programme and making it a permanent, but not mandatory, element of the specialist training process.
A briefing regarding the introduction of RTP took place on 13 May 2010 at RCPI, No 6 Kildare Street, Dublin 2. It was attended by Prof. TJ McKenna, Chair of the Irish Committee on Higher Medical Training, RCPI and Leo Kearns, CEO, RCPI.
Commenting on the introduction, Prof. TJ McKenna, said, “There is a significant number of doctors, working mainly at registrar grade, who are undertaking self-directed specialist training outside of any structured, recognised training programmes. The RCPI is introducing this programme to address this unregulated “gap” which currently exists in medical training.” Prof. McKenna added, “Registrars can now undergo regular appraisal and evaluation as part of a training programme which has been formally recognised by the Medical Council and which has the support of the HSE who will be funding the programme.”
Further information about RTP may be found here.
Applications
Applications will be accepted for the Registrar Training Programme (RTP) from Monday 17 May 2010 from a limited number of suitably qualified doctors working in the following specialties:
• General medicine (and its subspecialties)
• Paediatrics
• Pathology
• Obstetrics and Gynaecology
Application information will be available from Monday 17 May and can be found here. The closing date for applications is Friday 28th May 2010.
Approval and recognition of RTP
RTP has been granted formal recognition by the Medical Council, and has the support of the HSE.
The programme will commence, on a pilot basis, on 1st July 2010, and during this pilot phase, there will be regular appraisal of trainees’ progress through the programme and an evaluation of the educational opportunities offered by their posts.
As applications for RTP are being invited at a relatively late stage of the annual NCHD recruitment process, the Medical Council has agreed that participating doctors who are on the General Division of the Medical Council Register on 1st July 2010 will have until 31st August 2010 to transfer from the General to the Trainee Specialist division of the Medical Council Register. Doctors in RTP wishing to transfer to the Trainee Specialist division must make an application to the Medical Council by 1st July 2010.
Entry Requirements and how to apply
Entry to RTP is competitive. Applicants will be assessed for suitability; specifically, how the programme could help them to become successful applicants to HST.
Doctors who wish to apply to RTP must complete and return an application form, which will be made available on this website on Monday 17 May 2010.
The closing date for applications is Friday 28 May 2010. Late applications and/or supplementary information will not be accepted after the closing date.
Applications will be assessed for suitability for RTP by a panel convened by the relevent training body. Successful applicants will be notified on Friday 11 June 2010.
There are four entry requirements for RTP:
1. Applicants must hold a certificate of completion of Basic Specialist Training (formerly General Professional Training) in the relevant specialty. Confirmation of equivalence of BST in the relevant specialty will also be accepted. Applicants who are completing BST on 30th June 2010 must submit a letter of provisional approval of BST, which is available from the BST office in RCPI.
2. Applicants must not have spent more than two years in Irish NCHD posts following completion of Basic Specialist Training (excluding time spent in research/lecture posts).
3. Applicants must be eligible for inclusion on either the General or Trainee Specialist Division of the Medical Council’s register on 1st July 2010.
4. Applicants must hold, on 1st July 2010, either:
a. A registrar post that is currently approved for BST and that has been assigned a post number by the relevant training body.
b. An SHO post that is currently approved for BST and that has been assigned a post number by the relevant training body.
Training Credit
Trainees who gain entry to HST, following completion of RTP, may receive a maximum of six months HST credit for each year of RTP, up to a maximum of 12 months.
Who to contact
Queries about RTP may be directed to RTP@rcpi.ie or 01 8639 700