Paediatrics

Programme description

GMC Reference: SES/489

All trainees will start their training in South East Scotland spending ST1 and ST2 in placements at the Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Edinburgh and The Simpson Centre for Reproductive Health at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh during which time their training will focus on developing core skills in general paediatrics and neonatology.

ST3 typically comprises 6 months in general paediatrics and neonatology in a district general hospital and 6 months in community paediatrics either in Edinburgh or in one of the peripheral sites. ST4 typically involves 6 months of Paediatric Intensive Care Medicine and further Neonatal Intensive Care experience.

The final years of training (ST5-7), also known as level 2 training, provide the opportunity to develop sub-specialty interests within General and/or Community Paediatrics within the Training Programme or to pursue sub-specialty Grid training through a competitive national application process.  Every effort is made to tailor Level 3 training to the individuals’ interests. Trainees will typically spend 18m in a district general hospital and 18m in RHCYP rotating through a range of specialties. Some trainees will elect to undertake a SPIN ( Special Interest In) Module to focus their training more on one sub-specialty area in which case they would be offered one year of their level 2 training in this specialty

Sub-specialty grid training within South East Scotland is currently available in the following specialties: Neonatal Medicine, Oncology, GI/Hepatology/Nutrition, Respiratory Medicine, Neurology, Endocrine & Diabetes, Community Paediatrics, Infectious Diseases, Paediatric Emergency Medicine and Paediatric Intensive Care Medicine. Not all specialties will be available for Grid posts every year and this is dependent on a range of different factors influencing total numbers of trainees entering and leaving the programme.

 

 

Research, audit, teaching and management opportunities

There are close links to the University of Edinburgh and the programme has for many years successfully supported training in Clinical Lecturer posts.  The South East Scotland Programme has a long track record of supporting trainees in taking time out-of-programme to pursue higher degrees with a high proportion of South East Scotland trainees successfully completing such degrees when compared with the national average of paediatric trainees.

Additionally, we have been supportive of trainees seeking time out-of-programme for experience e.g. overseas where it can be demonstrated that such experience is valuable for the long-term career path and such experience is not available within the South East Scotland Training Programme.

There is a regionally delivered curriculum-matched training programme for SE Scotland paediatric trainees which is based at RHCYP Edinburgh with video-links to other regional training sites.

Where the training is delivered?

• Forth Valley Royal Hospital - FVRH
• Royal Hospital for Children and Young People, Edinburgh
• Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh
• St Johns Hospital, Livingston
• Victoria Hospital, Kirkcaldy
• Borders General Hospital, Melrose

South-East Scotland – placements in Edinburgh hospitals, Lothian, Fife, Forth Valley and Borders hospitals:

• Royal Hospital for Children and Young People, Edinburgh
• Simpson Centre for Reproductive Health (NNU), Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh
• Community Paediatrics, RHCYP and other venues across Lothian
• Borders General Hospital, Melrose and related community venues
• St John’s Hospital, Livingston
• Victoria Hospital, Kirkcaldy, Fife and related community venues
• Forth Valley Community Child Health

 

Contacts and useful links

Information
Programme type (Deanery or National):	Deanery
Administration office:	South-East
Lead Dean / Director:	Professor Alan Denison
Responsible Associate Postgraduate Dean or Assistant Director (GP):	Dr Claire Alexander
Specialty or Sub-specialty:	Specialty
Date of GMC recent approval:	Aug 2010
Associated Royal College - Faculty:	Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health
Curriculum and associated assessment system:	http://www.gmc-uk.org/education/postgraduate/paediatrics.asp
Programme administrator:	Name: Natalia Durok Address: NHS Education for Scotland, Centre for Health Science, Old Perth Road, Inverness, IV2 3JH Email: natalia.durok@nhs.scot
Programme director(s):	Name: Dr Laura Jones and Dr Ailis Orr Address: Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Edinburgh Email: Laura.Jones@nhslothian.scot.nhs.uk or ailis.orr@nhs.scot
Quality of training:	Quality Management

How to apply

This page was last updated on: 01.09.2025 at 15.17