North West

The Mersey region stretches from Southport through Liverpool and St. Helens, across to the Wirral and to Warrington and Runcorn in North Cheshire, down to Chester, Crewe and Macclesfield in South Cheshire. The IMT programme is based in the following Mersey hospitals:

Central hospitals

• Royal Liverpool & Broadgreen University Hospital
• Wirral Hospital
• University Hospital, Aintree
• Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital
• Marie Curie Hospice, Woolton
• Clatterbridge Centre for Oncology
• St. John's Hospice, Clatterbridge
• Walton Centre for Neurology & Neurosurgery

• St. Helens & Knowsley Hospital, Whiston
• Countess of Chester Hospital, Chester
• Southport & Ormskirk Hospital
• North Cheshire Hospital, Warrington
• Leighton Hospital (Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Trust), Crewe
• East Cheshire NHS Trust, Macclesfield
• Nobles Hospital, Isle of Man

Posts in all of the major medical specialties are available in the Mersey scheme. In Internal Medicine year 1 each placement is of four months duration. In Internal Medicine year 2 trainees will all have a 3 month post in Intensive Care medicine and in addition will have a 6 month post and a further 3 month post in different medical specialties. Trainees will not be in the same hospital in years 1 and 2.

Recruitment will be to the 3 year Internal medicine programme but we recognise some trainees may not wish to go into the third year. Overall, during the 3 years of the Internal medicine training programme we expect all trainees to spend at least one year in a hospital central hospital and one in a peripheral hospital. 

The North West School of Medicine aims to ensure that there is sufficient exposure to clinical medicine during Internal Medicine training to satisfy the curriculum, and all tracks will include a post in Geriatric Medicine, as recommended by the Joint Royal Colleges of Physicians Training Board (JRCPTB), and also an allocation to Internal Medicine. A wide range of other specialties are also included within the programme including cardiology, gastroenterology, haematology, diabetes and endocrinology, intensive care, neurology, oncology, renal medicine, rheumatology, respiratory medicine, infectious diseases, palliative medicine, dermatology, GUM and spinal injuries.

As well as trust-provided teaching sessions for Internal Medicine trainees, we also run a successful regional teaching programme for a half-day once a month organised by our local College tutors.

The venue rotates around the region to involve all teaching trusts, with the programme designed to support the delivery of the curriculum. We receive excellent feedback for these sessions. There is also some teaching for the Part 1 MRCP examination, and support available for PACES preparation. We support the development of Quality Improvement (QI) and run an annual QI showcase event. The Liverpool Medical institution hosts evening Teach-In events and also a Careers evening for IMT trainees who are considering their higher specialty training options.

QI and research are all encouraged, and as undergraduate students from the University of Liverpool attend all teaching hospitals there will be ample opportunity to develop your teaching skills.

Liverpool's skyline is dominated by fabulous architecture, and has many stylish bars, clubs and restaurants, along with eight national museums and galleries.

The city was European Capital of Culture 2008, and many new developments have taken place as a consequence of this, including the development of a major new shopping centre in the city centre.

The sporting talent within Liverpool is immense! Two Premier League football clubs, Aintree and Haydock park racecourses, and many championship golf courses can be found within the City, while just outside Liverpool, world-renowned rugby sides can be seen in St. Helens, Wigan and Warrington.

A little further from the city, Cheshire is the embodiment of breathtaking landscapes and stunning country estates. Fine restaurants, glamorous shops and impressive historical sights - including ruined castles and stately homes - are in abundance.

The internal medicine programme is based in the following North Western hospitals:

• Blackpool, Fylde and Wyre Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• Bolton Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
• Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust  
• East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust (Blackburn/Burnley)
• Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (Preston/Chorley)
• Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust (Oldham/Rochdale/North Manchester/Fairfield)
• Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust (Hope Hospital)
• Stockport NHS Foundation Trust
• Tameside Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
• The Christie Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
• University Hospital of South Manchester NHS Trust (Wythenshawe)
• University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Trust (Barrow-in-Furness/Lancaster)
• Wigan, Wrightington & Leigh NHS Trust

The Internal medicine programme

The Programme is divided into three zones; each provides the same high standards but offers a differing flavour of training.

There are four trusts with seven sites in Lancashire and Cumbria; four trusts and seven sites in Greater Manchester North & West; and four trusts and six sites in Central Manchester South & East.

Applicants are asked to express a preference between the different training tracks, to suit individual interests and career plans.  Allocation to tracks is on the basis of expressed preference and interview score.

Posts in all of the major medical specialties are available in the North West scheme. In Internal Medicine year 1 each placement is of four months duration. In Internal Medicine year 2 trainees will all have a 3 month post in Intensive Care medicine and in addition will have a 6 month post and a further 3 month post in different medical specialties. The majority of trainees will be based in one site for each year of the programme. Trainees will not be in the same hospital in years 1 and 2 and a small proportion of the tracks rotate between the zones although most will remain within the same zone for IM1 and IM2.

Year 3 trainees will have two six month posts and recruitment is to three year tracks, but we do recognise that some trainees may not wish to gointo the third year. 

The North West School of Medicine aims to ensure that there is sufficient exposure to clinical medicine during Internal Medicine training to satisfy the curriculum, and all tracks will include a post in Geriatric Medicine, as recommended by the Joint Royal Colleges of Physicians Training Board (JRCPTB) and also an attachment to intensive care medicine. A wide range of other specialties are also included within the programme including cardiology, gastroenterology, haematology, diabetes and endocrinology, intensive care, neurology, oncology, renal medicine, rheumatology, respiratory medicine, infectious diseases and dermatology.

As well as trust-provided teaching sessions for Internal Medicine trainees, each zone also runs a successful zonal teaching programme comprising half-day and full-day teaching. The venue rotates through different hospitals in the zone to involve all teaching trusts, with the programme designed to support the delivery of the curriculum. We receive excellent feedback for these sessions. We also provide skills training days in both IM1 and IM2.

There is some teaching for the Part 1 MRCP examination, and support available for PACES preparation. There is an active and successful NW regional Royal College of Physicians programme of education, including teach-ins and training days. We support the development of Quality Improvement (QI) and run an annual QI showcase event.

Research is also supported, with presentation of research at national and international meetings and publications of research achieved regularly by trainees in the trusts in the regional programme.

North Western has something for everyone: from the coastal town of Blackpool with its Pleasure Beach to Pendle Hill located near Forest of Bowland, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty; from our top-flight football clubs to the Imperial War Museum North and The Lowry in Salford, from the Trafford Centre and Curry Mile in Manchester to the farmers’ markets and tea-rooms of Lancashire, opportunities abound for outdoor pursuits, cultural activities, rest and relaxation. All of this is tied together with excellent motorway and rail links making us an excellent choice for your specialty training.

Further information on our area, as well as the hospitals within them, is available and can be found by visiting our Location Guide at http://www.nwpgmd.nhs.uk/content/location-guide.