The Complete Guide

to Working in the UK
for Indian Doctors
 Why work in the UK?
Working in the UK is an appealing career option for many Indian doctors, just as
Indian doctors are an attractive recruitment proposition for British hospitals and
GP surgeries.

The reasons are cultural, historical and practical.

• 
Most Indian medical schools use similar textbooks and curriculums to the
UK, which means knowledge and skills are largely transferable between
the two systems.

• 
More than 20,000 doctors from India already practice in the NHS, providing
a useful support network for new arrivals1. Their cross-cultural awareness is
particularly valued by those NHS organisations serving large, multi-cultural
populations.

The NHS is considered one of the top healthcare systems in the world2 and
• 
there is high international demand for the knowledge and skills acquired
by those working in it.

1. GMC: Licenced doctors by country of primary medical qualification

https://data.gmc-uk.org/gmcdata/home/#/reports/The%20Register/World%20maps/report

2. E. C. Schneider, D. O. Sarnak, D. Squires, A. Shah, and M. M. Doty, Mirror, Mirror: How the U.S. Health Care System Compares Internationally at a Time of Radical Change,
2 jobs.bmj.com The Commonwealth Fund, July 2017.
https://www.commonwealthfund.org/sites/default/files/documents/___media_files_publications_fund_report_2017_jul_pdf_schneider_mirror_mirror_exhibits.pdf
 There has never been a better time to consider working in the UK as a doctor. The
NHS currently has more than 9,000 vacant doctor posts3.

The UK government, in its workforce plan for the NHS, has admitted it is reliant
on recruiting overseas doctors until 2023 at least. It has removed its Tier 2 visa
cap for doctors and nurses wishing to work in the UK and there is pressure from
employers to make the registration and language-testing process simpler and
smoother for overseas doctors.

For doctors in India, this means enormous opportunities. Working in the NHS
would provide highly desired skills, the potential to access high-quality education
and training, diverse experiences and better pay.

An average doctor in India can expect between 1,200,000–2,000,000 rupees per

annum, equating to approximately £13,500–£22,500.

In comparison, trainees in the UK earn between £27,000–£31,000 per annum for

a 40-hour week.

Trainee specialists £37,000 to £47,000. Specialists earn between £39,000

to £73,000. Salaried GPs earn between £57,000–£87,000, although there is
no upper limit. Consultants start on £78,000 per annum, rising to as much as
£105,000. UK doctors are also paid extra for overtime worked, a 37% increase
for nights worked and may receive weekend working and on-call allowances,
depending on their contracts4.

The average cost of living in the UK for a family of four is about £30,000 per year,
although London and south east England will be more expensive.

This level of disposable income, combined with the

high conversion rate between pounds and rupees,
means many doctors are able to build savings and
send significant sums of money back to India.

3. NHS Improvement: Performance of the NHS provider sector for the year ended 31 March 2019
https://improvement.nhs.uk/documents/5404/Performance_of_the_NHS_provider_sector_for_the_quarter_4_1819.pdf

3 jobs.bmj.com 4. Health Careers (NHS)

https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/explore-roles/doctors/pay-doctors
 United Kingdom
₹3,300,000– ₹2,600,000 Average cost of living in the
UK includes rent and living

₹9,300,000 Average cost of costs for a family of four.

Averages out figures for
Doctor salary living London/Manchester, both
Approximately urban/suburban
range £30,000
Approximately
£37,000–£105,000

India
₹1,200,000– ₹314,000 Average cost of living in
India includes rent and

₹2,000,000 Average cost of living costs for a family of

four. Averages out figures
Doctor salary living for Mumbai, New Delhi,
Approximately and Chennai
range £3,500
Approximately
£13,500–£22,500
4 jobs.bmj.com
https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/explore-roles/doctors/pay-doctors
https://transferwise.com/gb/blog/cost-of-living-in-india
 How to get a job in the UK
Many Indian doctors report feeling daunted by the process required to work
in the UK. The process doesn’t need to be usettling and can be a lot easier to
understand when it is broken down into steps. Here is a quick overview, which
will be explored in more detail below:

1. Pinpoint where your training and skills best fit in the UK system.

2. Decide on your career goals while in the UK. For example, do you just
want the benefit of the excellent training in the UK or would you prefer
to live and work in the UK longer term? This will dictate which route you
should take. Schemes offering training will help take care of General
Medical Council (GMC) registration and visa applications but are usually
time limited and doctors must return back to India.

3. Register with the GMC – this will usually involve an exam either with the
GMC directly or via a training scheme. The process takes between 2 to 5
weeks to complete.

4. Find a job – you will not be allowed to practise medicine in the UK

without your licence from the GMC, so it’s unlikely you’ll be able to apply
without it.

5. Apply for your visa – visas where you are sponsored by an employer are
called Tier 2 visas; those where you are sponsored through a training
scheme are called Tier 5 visas.

6. Make sure you have saved enough money to get you through the
transition period of arriving in the UK and your first pay cheque.

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 The UK medical training
system
The diagram below shows how the medical specialty training process fits with
registration process in the UK. It will also help you understand the various grades
of jobs on offer in the UK.

The UK Medical Training System

Undergraduate Foundation CT1 CT1 & CT2 ST3 ST3 Onwards Specialist Consultant Appointment
(4 or 5 years) Years 1 & 2 Recruitment (2 or 3 years in Recruitment (Normally 4 - 6 years but duration Certification (Maintain CPD diary)
Training MBBS, MBChB, (2 years) Care Medical depends om EEA minima and
BM, MB, BCh Training or Acute achievement of comptencies)
Care Common Stem)

Exam MRCP(UK) MRCP(UK) Full Knowledge

Part 1 Part 2 / MRCP(UK) based
PACES assessment

Assessment Workplace based assessment

(recorded in ePortfolio)

Regulator
GMC General Medical Specialist Revalidation
Registration Council Registration

JRCPTB

Click here to view the full size diagram

6 jobs.bmj.com
 GMC registration
Doctors are unable to work in the UK until they gain registration with the GMC.
There are three types of registration – provisional, full and specialist/GP.

PROVISIONAL REGISTRATION

Provisional registration is only available to those doctors completing the first year
of foundation training.

FULL REGISTRATION

Full registration is applied for at the end of the first year of foundation training.

Overseas doctors wanting full registration must:

• Provide evidence of a degree awarded by a reputable institution and at

least one year of internship experience. The internship must have lasted
for a continuous 12 months with at least three months spent in medicine
and three months in surgery.

• Have either a valid International English Language Testing System (IELTS)

certificate (with a score of at least 7 in each area and an overall score of at
least 7.5) or an Occupational English Test (OET) certificate (with a grade of
at least ‘B’ in each testing area).

• Pass the Professional and Linguistic Assessments Board (PLAB) test. This
will check that you know as much as and can do the same as a doctor
starting the second year of their Foundation Programme training in the UK.
You must apply for registration within two years of passing the PLAB test.

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 What does the PLAB test involve?

PLAB part 1 - PLAB 1 is a written exam made up of 180 multiple choice

questions, which you must answer within three hours. Each starts with
a short scenario followed by a question. You need to choose the right
answer out of the five possible answers given. You can sit this in India
at various locations, including Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata,
Mumbai and New Delhi.

PLAB part 2 - PLAB 2 is an objective structured clinical exam involving live

interaction with actors, mannequins and medical equipment. It’s made
up of 18 scenarios, each lasting eight minutes, and aims to reflect real
life settings. Applicants are tested on skills around history taking, physical
examination, formulating a diagnosis, establishing a rapport with patients
and understanding of ethical principles. Part 2 tests run throughout the
year at the GMC’s clinical assessment centre in Manchester, UK.

The BMJ offer a PLAB exam revision module with over 1,200 revision
questions that you can access here.

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 SPECIALIST REGISTRATION

Overseas doctors can be added to the specialty or GP register without having

completed the UK specialty training posts. This is known as the Certificate of
Eligibility for Specialist Registration (CESR) route. Applicants must provide a
detailed portfolio of evidence of experience, skills and knowledge, which is then
assessed by the relevant Royal College as being equivalent to the current post-
graduate qualification.

However, the evidence bundle can often be up to 1,000 pages in total and take
6–9 months to assess. The GMC is pushing to make the process more flexible and
simpler so this may improve in the future.

Once on the GMC’s register, a doctor’s licence to practise is valid for five years.

Finding a Job
There are numerous routes to find jobs in the UK including:

1. Applying for jobs directly via specialist jobs websites, such as BMJ
Careers.

2. Registering with a specialist recruitment agency for either permanent or

locum work.

3. Winning a place on a specific programme focused on training posts, such

as the Medical Training Initiative, run by The Academy of Royal Colleges,
or the postgraduate training programme led by the British Association of
Physicians of Indian Origin (BAPIO) in association with Health Education
England.

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 Locum posts
A survey from NHS Employers of 45 organisations showed 16 of them recruited
from overseas using an agency in 20185.

However, Dr Ramesh Mehta, president of BAPIO, warns that some Indian doctors
who arrive in the UK to work as locum doctors have reported being ‘thrown in at
the deep end’ without being given any induction information or pastoral support.

Locum doctors often do not get the benefit of proper supervision nor any time
to study for exams and there have been cases of doctors being paid lower rates
than doctors working at an equivalent level in the same Trust.

“I would say those doctors who come to the UK to get postgraduate experience
and skills must be careful about thoroughly checking these details before they
accept locum positions,” Dr Mehta warns.

However, the advantages are that the agency organises most of the logistical
issues associated with GMC registration and finding work.

Schemes offering
training posts
The swiftest career progression is linked to the successful completion of each
training post. Training posts allow time for studying and exams and provide
suitably qualified supervisors and mentors.

There are a number of schemes that offer training posts to overseas and Indian
doctors. The most well-known is the Medical Training Initiative, run by the
Academy of Medical Royal Colleges. Recruitment focuses on suitably qualified,
overseas, postgraduate medical specialists. Often, they will already have passed

10 jobs.bmj.com 5. NHS Employers International Recruitment Survey

https://www.nhsemployers.org/news/2019/06/international-recruitment-survey-analysis
 Part 1 membership exams for the Royal College of Physicians while in India. They
are recruited to undertake a fixed period of training in the UK before returning
back to their own healthcare systems.

BAPIO’s postgraduate training scheme is on offer to those who have not

achieved relevant postgraduate training in India and offers a route to gain both
membership and fellowship in various specialties, as well as leadership and
managerial training through a combination of posts in both India and the UK for
fixed terms (between 2–4 years).

The advantage of these options is the high-quality education, the intensive

preparation, mentoring and support provided to eligible doctors. The
organisation running the scheme usually takes on all the logistical and
administration details required for GMC registration and sponsors all visa
applications.

However, most of these schemes operate on time-limited Tier 5 visas, which last
only two years. The aim is to provide doctors with increased education and skills
that can be taken back to benefit the Indian healthcare system.

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 Applying directly for posts
via specialist jobs sites
Most employers are used to overseas doctors applying for vacancies and will
conduct interviews to assess for themselves if an applicant has the skills and
knowledge to undertake the job.

Most require GMC registration, or evidence the applicant is in the process of

registering with the GMC.

Overseas doctors can apply for posts at any grade, provided they have the correct
GMC certification, skills and experience. ‘Non-training jobs’ or ‘locally employed
doctors’ are roles that work at Foundation Year (FY), Core Training (CT) and
Specialty Training (ST) grades but do not count towards training experience.

These opportunities arise because hospitals often need more doctors than there
are training posts in order to ensure they are fully-staffed. While a training post in
a specialty may only last six months, non-training posts will not have a time limit.

If applicants are careful about ensuring the job

they apply for has proper supervision, these jobs
are a useful way to gain the experience and skills
necessary to successfully apply for training roles,
as and when they come up.

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 Top tips to finding a job
in the UK
• Register with a job site, such as BMJ Careers, that focuses on medical
vacancies and upload your CV.

• Set up job alerts to be notified about relevant jobs at the grade, location
or salary level you are interested in.

• Ensure you have video conferencing facilities on your phone as many

employers are happy to conduct a first interview via video link.

• Try and block-book second stage interviews so you can get them all
done in a single trip to the UK. Most employers will be understanding
and try to work with your timetable. This will also allow you to gain an
understanding of the different areas of the UK and see the hospitals you
may be working in.

Top tips for interviews

• Research and ensure you have a thorough understanding of the NHS.
We have included a list of useful resources and links at the end of this
document that should help.

• Employers will generally ask about your qualifications, skills and

work experience. They may also ask questions about ethics and your
understanding of clinical audit, clinical governance and research.

• Employers may also ask scenario-based questions and how you would
approach typical cases, including emergency cases.

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 Immigration and visa
processes
Once a job offer is made, you will need to gain your visa.

Most medical jobs need a Tier 2 visa, which requires sponsorship by an employer.

The employer will issue a certificate of sponsorship and this must be used to apply
for permission to enter the UK. If any other new employment is sought, a new
certificate of sponsorship will be required.

Depending on the salary level of the job, and the start date, the UK Home Office
may also require applicants to provide evidence of additional available funds to
support themselves and any dependents, in the UK.

If the application is successful, individuals will be granted leave to enter or remain

in the UK for up to five years.

Doctors can apply to settle permanently in

the UK after five years of continual residence,
provided the employer still requires them
and they have reached the minimum earning
threshold of £35,800.

It should be noted that while this figure is correct

as of September 2019 it may well change with
time – you should always be sure to check the
most recent information from Gov.uk here

Those transferring into training posts will have

their visas sponsored by Health Education
England or the relevant royal college, not their
employer. Trainees will not need to apply for new
sponsorship if they change employers/location
in England during their training.

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 What’s it like?
Two Indian doctors who have recently made the move to the UK talk
about their experiences.

Dr Amey Tamhane

“I come from Pune, near Mumbai, and I work in ophthalmology

surgery. I wanted to work in the UK because of the quality of the
education and practice here. Quality of practice is not necessarily
appreciated by patients in India who only care about the outcome.
Also, I did not like having to make decisions about treatments that
had to fit the budget of the patient.

To practice privately in India I have to buy my own equipment and in

my field, that is very expensive. But without the best equipment it is
difficult to provide high-quality care.

So I applied to the Medical Training Initiative (MTI) and had an

interview in Delhi with Dr Parag Singhal where I was mostly asked
about my surgical experience. After a few months, I was notified
there was a specialty training place (ST3) available in Yeovil, a town
in the south west of the UK.

I was interviewed by the consultant in the ophthalmology

department and I liked the sound of what they were doing in Yeovil
and so I was offered, and accepted, the job.

The MTI is a two-year programme but in that time I intend to do my

exams to become a member of the Royal College of Ophthalmology
which will help my application for a Tier 2 visa.

15 jobs.bmj.com
 I’ve been working in the UK for just over a month now and so far the
reality has lived up to my expectations. I think I was prepared very
well by BAPIO and Dr Parag Singhal who have been really helpful
and supportive and gave me a lot of confidence to make the move.

The way you practice with patients here is similar to India. The
main difference I’ve noticed is that patients can’t just make an
appointment with a specialist doctor, they must be referred by their
GP. I think perhaps this is better as I am only treating patients who
need it.

I do have one other colleague from India here and that has been a
relief as there was someone I could talk to in my own language and
share experiences. But I’m lucky that my wife also came with me on
a dependency visa and she is currently looking for work.

I like Yeovil better than London. The weather is a bit warmer

because it is further south and it’s a smaller town so everything
is quite close. We don’t have to travel very far to get groceries or
anything else we need. Our accommodation is much cheaper as
well and it’s a nicer environment – not so fast-paced.

My advice to anyone else considering the move is to decide on

your long-term, 10-year plan for your career. Education and training
was important to me, which is why I chose the MTI route but its
designed so that once you have your training then you return to
your home country.

I think the PLAB route is easier in terms of getting a job and is better
if you are thinking you might want to stay longer but it takes longer
to access training and career progression.”

16 jobs.bmj.com
 “
The way you practice with patients here is similar
to India. The main difference I’ve noticed is that
patients can’t just make an appointment with a
specialist doctor, they must be referred by their
GP. I think perhaps this is better as I am only

”
treating patients who need it.

17 jobs.bmj.com
 Dr Abhishek Ray

“The NHS is one of the best systems in the world to train in

because of the sheer volume and variety of work you can do in a
supported and supervised environment. The salaries are also quite
high here, which makes things easier and you can earn enough to
send money home.

I had worked in India for about six years and did the first part of the
Royal College exams so that I could become eligible for the MTI. I
did the exam in India and the MTI matched me with a hospital Trust
in the UK who interviewed me via skype. It was about 6–7 months
after that that I started work for a hospital on the outskirts of London.
The process can be much quicker but I needed to save for my visa
application, as well as all the fees and the first month before I started
earning properly.

That first month was quite difficult because the conversion rate is
so high, but once I started earning, it became much easier. I’m in a
core training (CT2) job. I started working in an acute medical unit and
then rotated to a renal unit. I’m currently working in haematology.
Eventually, I would like to specialise in gastroenterology but that will
depend on training places and if I’m allowed to stay. My MTI visa is
only valid for two years and they are quite stringent about that. If I
was given a choice I would definitely stay.

I would say the medical side of things is very similar to India and most
Indian doctors would not struggle with it. The main difference is that
in the UK everyone wants you to practice safely, whereas in India
you are expected to know everything as a doctor. Here, it’s expected
you will have doubts and need to ask questions and speak to senior
colleagues about things. They also have much more standardised
systems of practice, such as the NICE guidelines and the GMC’s Good
Medical Practice guidelines. In India, we do not have these, except in
those diseases that are endemic, such as malaria and tuberculosis.

18 jobs.bmj.com
 Also the social care aspect of care here is almost unheard of in India.

I have not struggled with too many things – except the cold. That
was quite a shock! Otherwise, I felt quite well prepared. I particularly
found the GMC workshop for overseas doctors really useful for
explaining all the differences and what to expect.

There are always the bits and bobs that come with moving to a
new country without your family – for example, having to do all
the cooking and shopping while also working. Accommodation is
expensive in the area I’m in but I’m still in hospital accommodation,
which is a bit more affordable.

The main advice I would give Indian doctors considering the move
is to keep an open mind and not listen to rumours. There are a lot of
rumours in India about working in the UK and I would say only about
10% of them have any basis in fact and the issues are really quite
miniscule in reality.

Also I would say they don’t need to rush. Often, Indian doctors feel
they have limited time and have to start aiming for training posts
straight away but I think it is better to actually start with a non-
training job and get really confident in it and then start looking for a
training post.

Everyone has been very welcoming here – the colleges and the
Trust have all been very supportive of me and I have not had to go
too far to find those who speak my language – on the first day in
my job the consultant who showed me round was from Kolkata, my
home area in India.”

19 jobs.bmj.com
 “ The main advice I would give Indian doctors
considering the move is to keep an open mind
and not listen to rumours. There are a lot of
rumours in India about working in the UK and
I would say only about 10% of them have any

”
basis in fact.

20 jobs.bmj.com
 Opportunities on offer
The number of job offers likely to be made to overseas doctors may depend
on the specialty area. The NHS Employers survey found hospitals were mostly
recruiting international doctors into core medical training, emergency medicine,
radiology and both clinical and medical oncology.

Dr Mehta, as part of his work with BAPIO’s postgraduate training scheme, says
the areas with the most likely available training places for non-UK graduates are
general medicine, psychiatry, gynaecology, obstetrics and paediatrics.

“Most Indian doctors are quite good in the theoretical and the practical skills, so
depending on their experience, most would be looking to move to ST1-ST3 jobs.
However, there are a lot of vacancies in the middle grades of specialty training
between the ST3-ST5 where they are supervised by consultants but are the foot
soldiers on the hospital floor doing the emergency work.”

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 Why do doctors like
practicing medicine in
the UK? It can be safer
Many practitioners decide to come to the UK because the NHS offers free
healthcare to everyone. For doctors this can allow the freedom to practice
medicine in line with their own ethics and values and not a patient’s ability to pay.

This is in contrast with India which has one of the lowest health budgets in the
world and the system of private health insurance often means medics and
families are forced to choose treatments to fit the patient’s budget.

Many Indian doctors also dislike the corruption in the Indian healthcare system.
Transparency International found it was one of the most corrupt in the world
with kick-backs endemic and 59% of service users saying they had paid a bribe
to access services. The same organisation has rated the UK as having one of the
lowest bribery rates in the world.

In addition the UK has guidelines on best practice and the most cost effective
treatments set by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) to achieve
standardised and high quality practice. This helps doctors feel safer in their
practice.

Doctors also feel safer from violence in the UK. The Indian Medical Association
has reported that 75% of doctors in India have experienced violence, compared
to 15% of all NHS staff6.

Despite the pressure on NHS doctors this is still exceeded in India with one
government doctor per 10,189 people in India compared with 2.8 doctors per
1,000 patients in the UK.

22 jobs.bmj.com 6. NHS staff survey 2019 https://www.nhsstaffsurveys.com/Page/1056/Home/NHS-Staff-Survey-2018/

 What I wish I knew before
moving to the UK
The following tips have been collected by the BMJ, the British Medical Association
and the GMC from doctors who have already made the move to work in the UK
from India.

MEDICAL APPROACHES

• Patient confidentiality and consent is paramount in the UK. All treatments

must be explained and consent sought before proceeding, including
sharing information. This is different to India, where the family is often
consulted and considered before deciding on treatments.

• The prevalence of care homes, nursing homes and intermediate care in

the UK, and the interaction with social care and hospital discharge, may be
confusing for Indian doctors where families often provide care for elderly
loved ones.

• There are often differences in approaches to end-of-life care

methodologies, particularly around resuscitation protocols and palliative
care provision.

• The ‘team’ is very important in the UK. Multidisciplinary teams are often
used to help patients with multiple needs and all contributions are
considered equally valuable. The team may include nurses, occupational
therapists and social workers. Nurses, for example, are highly trained and
many can undertake minor clinical procedures without the supervision of
a doctor.

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 • Asking for help and guidance from senior colleagues and team members
is expected and seeking a mentor among senior Indian doctors can be a
helpful way to assimilate more quickly.

• In the UK, both clinical and non-clinical skills (such as communication with
patients, empathy and negotiation) are considered important.

• Patients are often more ‘educated’ than in India and may want to debate
treatments or information they have read about online. Patients will expect
to be involved in decision making.

CULTURAL DIFFERENCES

• The UK tends to use a lot of abbreviations in both conversation and

documents. Colleagues will assume you know what they mean unless you
ask.

• Punctuality and saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ are considered important in
the UK.

• Say ‘sorry’ only when you have something to be sorry about.

• Keeping eye contact with the person you are talking with is considered a
sign of honesty and sincerity in the UK.

• Say ‘no’ if that is what you mean – being direct is often valued by patients
and reduces the risk of misunderstandings.

• Accents will create problems. The UK has a wide variety of regional

accents, some of which are very different to the traditional, English
accent many Indian doctors might expect. Patients may also struggle to
understand your own accent, particularly if you are working in rural areas.
Encourage colleagues to correct you when you make mistakes, ask nurses
or other colleagues to help if there appear to be particular difficulties
with some patients. Practice using simple, non-medical language to help
improve communication.

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 LIVING IN THE UK

• Watch lots of British TV. This will give you a good insight into the lifestyles
and attitudes, as well as behaviour that would be considered taboo in
India but may not be considered so in the UK. Seeing this first on TV could
potentially save you embarrassment and clear barriers to interaction. It is
also a good opportunity to hear different accents and try these out in the
comfort and privacy of your own home.

• Do visit public libraries and local fairs and festivals. Most provide free
internet access and are a great source of free information about the local
area as well. They can also provide opportunities to meet local people and
join local clubs and activities

• Don’t bring too many clothes from India. Wait for the sales and buy them in
the UK as they will be more suited to the weather.

• Do bring some food or treats from home. Taking them into work to share
with colleagues can be a great way to break the ice and for colleagues to
gain a better understanding of your cultural background.

• Do maintain contacts with friends and family back home. Using Skype or
video calling can be a great way to relieve homesickness and their support
will be invaluable, particularly in the first few months of living in a new
country.

• Do explore. You may find other areas where you would prefer to live
and work.

• Do take up a hobby or interest. This can be a good way to relax and de-
stress, meet local people and make friends outside of work.

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 “
Asking for help and guidance
from senior colleagues and
team members is expected
and seeking a mentor among
senior Indian doctors can be
a helpful way to assimilate

”
more quickly.

26 jobs.bmj.com
 Conclusion
The UK has always been a popular destination for Indian doctors and at the moment
their skills are in high demand.

If considering making the move, Indian doctors can be confident there are many
others making the same journey and numerous doctors and organisations happy to
help with any of the cultural differences and challenges that working in a new country
throws up.

Associations such as BAPIO, the British Medical Association (BMA) and the Royal
Colleges are all available to help doctors and often have dedicated sections on their
websites devoted to international doctors, as does NHS Employers and the GMC.

Working in one of the world’s best health systems not only provides invaluable
experience, skills and knowledge but boosts career prospects anywhere in the world.

27 jobs.bmj.com
 On top of this, the favourable salaries and fairer systems of pay and working
conditions, as well as greater respect, transparency and higher standards
of living, are all significant compensations for the upheaval of moving and
adjusting to a new country.

If you’re ready to take the next step in your

medical career in the UK then sign up to the
BMJ Careers website for job alerts today.

Sign up for job alerts

28 jobs.bmj.com
 Useful contacts & resources
Useful contacts GMC: Specialty specific guidance for CESR and
British Association for Physicians of Indian Origin CEGPR
(BAPIO) https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-
http://www.bapio.co.uk licensing/join-the-register/registration-applications/
specialty-specific-guidance-for-cesr-and-cegpr
British Medical Association
https://www.bma.org.uk Royal College of Physicians workshops: Navigating
the CESR route
General Medical Council https://www.rcplondon.ac.uk/education-practice/
https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and- courses/navigating-cesr-route
licensing/join-the-register
NHS Employers: Working and training in the NHS: A
Academy of Medical Royal Colleges guide for international medical graduates
https://www.aomrc.org.uk https://www.nhsemployers.org/case-studies-and-
resources/2014/08/working-and-training-in-the-
NHS Employers nhs-a-guide-for-international-medical-graduates
https://www.nhsemployers.org/

Working in the UK Visas and immigration advice

BMJ Careers Gov.uk
https://jobs.bmj.com/ https://www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration

BMA: Life and work in the UK

https://www.bma.org.uk/advice/work-life-support/ Understanding the NHS
life-and-work-in-the-uk NHS England: An introduction to the NHS
https://www.england.nhs.uk/participation/nhs/
GMC: Welcome to UK practice workshop
https://www.gmc-uk.org/about/what-we-do-and- NHS Scotland: About NHS Scotland
why/learning-and-support/workshops-for-doctors/ https://www.scot.nhs.uk/about-nhs-scotland/
welcome-to-uk-practice/doctors
NHS Wales: About Us
GMC: Virtual reality app Patient Journey to GP https://www.wales.nhs.uk/nhswalesaboutus
practice
https://www.gmc-uk.org/about/what-we-do-and- NHS in Northern Ireland Health and Social Care
why/learning-and-support/e-learning-resources/ http://online.hscni.net/home/hsc-structure/
patient-journey-to-gp-practice
Kings Fund: How does the NHS in England work? An
GMC: Working as a doctor in the UK alternative guide
https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEARD4I3xtE
licensing/join-the-register/before-you-apply/
working-as-a-doctor-in-the-uk Understanding the NHS
https://www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/thenhs/about/
Blog: Naseer’s journey Documents/simple-nhs-guide.pdf
https://naseersjourney.com/

UK Cost of Living Calculators

Registration and post-qualification in the UK https://abcfinance.co.uk/blog/the-true-cost-of-
GMC: What you need to know about the PLAB test living-in-uk-cities/
https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-
licensing/join-the-register/plab https://www.expatistan.com

https://www.numbeo.com/

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