Introduction

In 2018 the Royal College of Psychiatrists launched the Foundation Fellowship scheme. This paper seeks to provide guidance about the recruitment and selection process for Psychiatry Foundation Fellowship (PFF) Programmes for UKFP 2021.

Background

The programme aims to improve exposure to the specialty and ensure that foundation doctors are supported in their interest in psychiatry throughout the programme, maintaining and enhancing their enthusiasm for the specialty. This is especially important for those who may have limited opportunity to explore their interest via a clinical placement. The aim of the scheme is to identify medical students who have expressed an interest in psychiatry as a potential career choice and to support them through to application for specialty training. As well as having access to educational opportunities relevant to psychiatry e.g. funded attendance at relevant conferences, on-line learning and psychiatry journals, trainees will also access psychiatric supervision and be able to attend reflective Balint groups. The aim is to introduce a strong emphasis on the psychological aspects of medicine throughout foundation training to enhance the educational opportunities afforded in non-psychiatric rotations for those keen to develop expertise in this area. Fellows may also choose to be linked to College faculties to provide additional mentoring in a potential subspecialty (e.g. child and adolescent, perinatal etc). Psychiatry supervisors will deliver psychiatric supervision which will run on a longitudinal basis throughout the two-year programme.

Aims

The Psychiatry Foundation Fellowship programme aims to improve exposure to the specialty for foundation trainees. The scheme will ensure that a greater number of Foundation Doctors are supported in their interest in Psychiatry throughout the Foundation programme, maintaining and enhancing their enthusiasm for the specialty. This is especially important for those who may have limited opportunity to explore their interest via a clinical placement. Psychiatry has faced challenge historically in recruiting to Core Training posts. The aim of the scheme is to identify medical students with above average academic ability who have expressed an interest in psychiatry as a potential career choice and to support them through to application for specialty training. The Fellowship will last for the duration of the foundation programme i.e. two years. During this time, they will be supported through the Foundation Programme and into Core Training.

You MUST apply for Foundation Programme (FP) before applying to Psychiatry Foundation Fellowship (PFF) or Foundation Priority Programme (FPP)

Following the publication of Health Education England’s (HEE) Foundation Review, the Royal College of Psychiatrists, in collaboration with the UK Foundation Programme Office (UKFPO) seek to appoint Psychiatry Foundation Fellowship (PFF) Programmes across England. The fellowships will last for the duration of the foundation programme, i.e. two years. During this time, trainees will be supported through the Foundation Programme and into Core Training.

Offers for these posts will be made as part of the national allocation to foundation schools for standard Foundation Programmes (FP). Detailed information can be found in the document bank below. 

Please note, England and Wales will be using the process detailed in the timeline below, Scotland will include PFF posts as part of the FPP process and Northern Ireland have opted out.

Offers

The UKFPO will manage the offers process centrally. Offers will be made sequentially for the recruitment to these new posts to align with the national accepted business process: 1) AFP, 2) PFF, 3) FPP and 4) FP.

Applicants who accept and offer for AFP will be withdrawn from PFF, FPP and FP. Applicants who accept an offer for PFF will be withdrawn from FPP and FP.

Any unfilled Psychiatry Fellowship posts will be transferred across to the FP vacancy for inclusion in the national allocation process for standard FP places.

Timeline

Dates	Recruitment Activity
Thursday 24th September 2020	Posts advertised
December 2020 – January 2021	National Application Window (all vacancies)
February 2021	Review of applications by the Royal College
Thursday 11th March 2021	National allocation to foundation schools
Tuesday 16th March 2021 at 12:00 (noon)	Deadline for applicants to opt out of PFF selection process
By Thursday 18th March 2021	Applicants pre-allocated to PFF posts within the foundation school they have been allocated to
Monday 22nd March 2021	Group match results released (where applicable)
Thursday 8th April 2021	Match to programme results released
July / August 2021	Posts commence

 

The application window for these posts will be consistent with the timeline for all other foundation applications.

YHFS have chosen the following 4 programmes to be offered as PFFs

2021PFF-WY183	WY 2 year Foundation programme F1 Bradford / F2 C & H (Psychiatry Fellowship)	General (Internal) Medicine - Geriatric Medicine	General Psychiatry	General Surgery	Paediatrics	General Surgery UGI	General (Internal) Medicine - Geriatric Medicine / Acute Elderly Medicine
2021PFF - SY067	SY 2 Year foundation Programme F1 Sheffield / F2 Doncaster (Psychiatric Fellowship)	General Psychiatric Adult Inpatient	General Surgery Vascular	General (Internal) Medicine - E&D	Renal Medicine	Urology	Intensive Care Medicine
2021PFF - EY071	EY 2 Year Foundation Programme F1 Hull / F2 Scunthorpe (Psychiatric Fellowship)	General Psychiatry	Geriatric Medicine	General Surgery Upper GI Surgery	Paediatrics	Emergency Medicine	Rehabilitation Medicine
2021PFF - EY079	EY 2 Year Foundation Programme F1 Hull / F2 Hull (Psychiatric Fellowship)	General Surgery - Colorectal	General Psychiatry	Geriatric Medicine	General Practice	Urology	Emergency Medicine