Medicine and dentistry
This page has been designed to give a starting point for those looking into careers in medicine.
See also our page on Sciences - Health and related and Health Professions
What are careers in medicine and dentistry?
A career in medicine encompasses many roles including; doctor, surgeon, anaesthetist. We also have information for nursing and midwifery.
Doctors provide health care and health promotion services in hospitals and in the community. They work as part of interdisciplinary teams that include nurses, surgeons and other health care professionals and other professionals such as social workers and psychologists.
Medicine is about helping people - treating illness, providing advice and reassurance, and seeing the effects of both ill health and good health from the patient's point of view.
Dentists treat problems that affect the mouth and teeth; they also carry out related preventive work. Most dentists work as self-employed practitioners in general practice, providing dental care to the public under The National Health Service (NHS) and/or privately. Some dentists will become teachers or lecturers in dental schools, others will be employed in hospitals or community clinics, but most will become general dental practitioners.
Prospects
Prospects is a graduate careers website with job profiles, including doctor (general practice), doctor (hospital) and dental hygienist, dentist
Types_of_jobs - Health
You may also wish to look at the health sector guide from Prospects which details current trends in this sector.
NHS Careers
This site has extensive information about working in medicine, detailing a range of roles in medical specialities, surgical specialities, psychiatry, general practice, paediatrics and child health, obstetrics and gynaecology, pathology, radiology, anaesthetics, and ophthalmology.
www.nhscareers.nhs.uk
How do I get into it?
Brighton and Sussex Medical School
The school is a joint institution of the Universities of Sussex and Brighton and you can find details on the following programmes:
- Undergraduate study
- Postgraduate study
- Access to medicine - Access for mature entrants who lack either a sufficient academic record or an adequate knowledge of Biology and Chemistry to gain a qualification acceptable for entry into medical school.
A five year degree in dentistry (a BDS or BChD) is the basic requirement for the profession, and graduate entry to dental schools is sometimes possible.
British Dental Association
The British Society of Dental Hygiene & Therapy (BSDHT)
Click on 'Careers' to go to the following section:
Careers in Dental Hygiene and Therapy
Dental Guide
Visit the site to see a complete list of links to the websites of the UK's dental schools.
www.dentalguide.co.uk
The Foundation Programme
A two-year generic training programme which forms the bridge between medical school and specialist/general practice training
www.foundationprogramme.nhs.uk
Finding an employer in this sector
Many people in medicine work in the NHS. You can search for jobs on the NHS website by area, profession. Dentists in general practice are self-employed, usually treating a mixture of NHS and private patients. Others are employed by the NHS, the Armed Forces, or by corporate practices such as The Boots Company Plc.
www.jobs.nhs.uk/
Local Health Organisations:
NHS South of England
Established on 3 October 2011, It comprises South Central, South East Coast and South West Strategic Health Authorities
Brighton and Sussex Universities Hospitals NHS Trust
East Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust
Western Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust
www.westernsussexhospitals.nhs.uk
Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust
Private healthcare is also an option for those looking for a medical role. It encompasses a broad spectrum of activities, including hospital treatments, fixed-price surgery, cosmetic surgery and dentistry, laser eye surgery, health insurance and screening, infertility treatment, psychiatric care, care of the elderly and private medical laboratories. Details of the larger private healthcare employers, such as BUPA, can found at the end of the Prospects health sector guide.
SciGrads
SciGrads is a new online initiative to bring recruiters into direct contact with the best undergraduates and graduates in science, technology & medicine.
www.scigrads.com/
Further information and useful links
Academy of Royal Medical Colleges
The Academy co-ordinates the work of its Royal College members and has links to all their websites.
www.aomrc.org.uk
British Medical Association (BMA)
The BMA is Britain's professional union of doctors. The website offers overviews of the union's work, information services and also offers discussion forums on a broad range of medical topics.
www.bma.org.uk
General Medical Council (GMC)
The regulatory body for doctors. Their website contains details about the work of the GMC and a facility to search for details of registered doctors in the UK.
www.gmc-uk.org
Modernising Medical Careers
The Modernising Medical Careers team is working with colleagues around the country to develop and implement a better way of training tomorrow's doctors. The MMC website is the central information source for the MMC project, with specific information on Foundation Programmes and all the latest news about MMC.
www.mmc.nhs.uk/
Royal College of Surgeons
British Dental Association
General Dental Council (GDC)
UK and Ireland Dental Guide