• FAQs

    What is the timeline for Internal Medicine Training (IMT)?

    The first intake into Stage 1 of IMT is on schedule to start in August 2019. Those in Group 2 specialties will enter into Stage 2 of training in 2021 and those specialties in Group 1 will enter into Stage 2 in 2022.

    What is the difference between Group 1 and Group 2 specialties?

    Group 1 specialties will dual accredit in internal medicine and their chosen specialty. They will complete three years of medical training prior to entering into Stage 2 for a further four years.

    Group 2 specialties will single accredit in their chosen specialty and exit IMT after two years (as long as the entry requirements for their chosen specialty are met, including completion of MRCP).

    If I don’t know which specialty I want to do, can I do all three years of Stage 1 and then decide to do a Group 2 specialty?

    Yes, you will be able to complete all three years of IMT and then apply for a Group 2 specialty if you wish to.

    If I leave IMT after two years then decide I want to do a Group 1 specialty, will I be able to return to IMT Stage 1 to complete that year?

    Yes, if you need to undertake an IMT Stage 1 Year 3 year then this will be allowed and the majority of deaneries have said they intend to try and accommodate those individuals in the same place as they did IMT Years 1 and 2.

    If I have to undertake an IMT Stage 1 Year 3 year, will that be within my current deanery?

    Yes, the deaneries have pledged that they will accommodate their trainees who transition from CMT to IMT or have completed CMT within three years and need to do an IMT Stage 1 Year 3 year to qualify to apply for Stage 2 to undertake that third year in the same deanery.

    If I am currently a CMT but I am going to have time out e.g. Out of Programme Research (OOPR), maternity leave, or working less than full time, and I will not complete CMT before the transition to IMT, will I have to transition?

    Yes, you will have to transition over to IMT and if you want to pursue a Group 1 specialty will be expected to do IMT Stage 1 Year 3. However, this will not change your overall training time as it remains a seven year training programme, you will simply apply for Stage 2 and commence a year later.

    The entry requirements for Group 1 specialties from 2022 will require completion of full IMT or equivalent. Trainees who have completed CMT or ACCS-AM will require IMT Year 3 training and this will be arranged in the HEE local office/deanery in which CMT/ACCS was completed. There will not be a competitive recruitment process for this group of trainees. CMT/ACCS-AM trainees who are currently training less than full time and will not complete their training before 2021 will be eligible for IMT Year 3 training in the same deanery.

    If I am still undertaking CMT rotations and then have to transition into IMT, how will that work?

    The transitioning plan is still being confirmed, but the current intention is that trainees will continue in CMT rotations until their end of year ARCP and then transition into IMT posts in the August at completion of the rotation they are in for that ARCP. In transitioning into IMT, the requirements for completion of IMT will be made on an individual basis, taking into account rotation and experience from CMT. You will not have to repeat CMT under the heading of IMT as existing rotations and competencies will be transferred across. The number of clinics already done and requirements for specific rotations, e.g. geriatrics, will also be assessed and the requirements determined on an individual basis.

    If I am currently on a CMT programme with jobs picked specifically and I have time out for maternity leave, will I still be guaranteed that job on return with the transition to IMT?

    This will have to be discussed at local level and may be able to be arranged, however there is no guarantee that that job placement will be retained. However, this is not a change from the current CMT process currently where no placement is guaranteed if time out for any reason is undertaken.

    Will I have to complete the IMT curriculum if I am in an Academic Clinical post?

    From 2022, academic trainees in Group 1 specialties will need to complete IMT. Trainees who do not complete CMT and move into higher training by 2021 will require IMT Year 3 training and this will be arranged by the HEE local office/deanery.

    What is the intention regarding pay for IMT – will I be working as a registrar and paid as a CMT?

    JRCPTB have been working with NHS Employers to ensure that trainees will not be financially affected by the transition to IMT. Within IMT the pay scale will reflect current CMT pay for Years 1 and 2. IMT Stage 1 Year 3 pay will reflect current ST3 pay.

    I am hoping to take time out of programme once I have commenced my higher specialty training. Which curriculum will I CCT against?Trainees must be converted to the most up-to-date curriculum within two years of its introduction. Thus it depends on when you take time out as to whether you will be expected to transition across to the new curriculum.

    If you are training in a Group 2 specialty that is going to become a Group 1 specialty this is likely to be slightly different given the gap the trainee will have had in IM thus it is likely, though yet to be confirmed, that these trainees will have an extension to the curriculum and single accredit CCT.

    If you do transition across to the new curriculum then, as for CMT, your existing competencies will be taken into consideration and individual requirements will be outlined.