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As Jones identified [1], medical students are not exposed to more niche specialties. This is a particular problem as many specialties are increasingly short-staffed [2]. Foundation doctors only experience six different specialties during their foundation training, and this compounds the problem further.
This highlights the importance of promoting ‘Taster Weeks’ to foundation trainees. These are short one-week attachments in any specialty of the trainees choosing. However, only 5% of foundation year doctors take up this opportunity [3]. Promoting Taster Weeks to doctors who are early in their careers could help improve retention of doctors in training and in part help alleviate the staffing crisis the NHS has encountered.
1 Jones H. Role model: Tamsin Greenwell. BMJ 2020;368. doi:10.1136/bmj.l7079
2 British Medical Association. The state of pre and post-graduate medical recruitment in England, September 2017. 2017.
3 Collins J. Foundation for Excellence An Evaluation of the Foundation Programme. London, UK: 2010.
Re: Role model: Tamsin Greenwell
As Jones identified [1], medical students are not exposed to more niche specialties. This is a particular problem as many specialties are increasingly short-staffed [2]. Foundation doctors only experience six different specialties during their foundation training, and this compounds the problem further.
This highlights the importance of promoting ‘Taster Weeks’ to foundation trainees. These are short one-week attachments in any specialty of the trainees choosing. However, only 5% of foundation year doctors take up this opportunity [3]. Promoting Taster Weeks to doctors who are early in their careers could help improve retention of doctors in training and in part help alleviate the staffing crisis the NHS has encountered.
1 Jones H. Role model: Tamsin Greenwell. BMJ 2020;368. doi:10.1136/bmj.l7079
2 British Medical Association. The state of pre and post-graduate medical recruitment in England, September 2017. 2017.
3 Collins J. Foundation for Excellence An Evaluation of the Foundation Programme. London, UK: 2010.
Competing interests: No competing interests