RCR Curriculum

The curriculum design follows on from the “Shape of Training” review, aiming to produce trainees with generic professional capabilities -recognising that we need more generalists, and less specialists, to treat an ageing population with complex multiple co-morbidities. 

• The curriculum aims to produce clinical radiologists with the ability to provide general and emergency radiology in any NHS environment and specialist skills in one or more areas. This allows provision of acute imaging services vital to supporting the swift and accurate diagnoses of patients reporting to emergency departments, as well as meeting the increasing demand for specialist diagnostic and treatment services. 

There is emphasis on trainees maintaining core diagnostic and interventional skills through subspecialty training, and developing the skills to work in multidisciplinary teams and collaborative training. 

• All radiologists are trained in a number of image-guided procedures such as performing biopsies and inserting tubes and drains, as well as performing diagnostic procedural work such as fluoroscopy 
• Developing and training other practitioners in aspects of diagnostic imaging and intervention requires radiologists with leadership, management and education skills. 
• This curriculum aims to equip radiologists with the skills to fully engage in these roles. 

The new curriculum is more concise (for CR reduced from 191 pages down to 70!), and moves away from the "tick boxes" and lists of the previous document. 

The structure of training has not significantly changed, and this diagram will look familiar for CR:

There are Critical Progression Points- one after ST3 and the other at CCT. We will address these in more detail in subsequent emails, particularly with regard to ARCP.  

• A critical progression point is a point in a curriculum where a learner transitions to higher levels of professional responsibility or enters a new or specialist area of practice, including successful completion of training. These transitions are often associated with an increase in potential risk to patients or those in training. 

As now, from ST4 trainees will begin to transition to further study in an area of special interest. These areas of special interest reflect service need, based on data from the RCR workforce census. 

It is recommend that trainees should spend 60% of their time during ST4 maintaining and further developing their general radiology skills, and 40% of their time beginning to apply these generalist skills to their area of special interest. 

Special interest training will allow development of crucial generic skills, for example managing multidisciplinary team meetings, providing an expert opinion and adapting to technological developments and research. 

At ST5, there will be a greater focus on specialist skills, with a guideline of 40% of trainee’s time spent on maintaining general radiology skills and 60% spent on developing their area of special interest. 

Please download a copy of the CR curriculum here:  

https://www.rcr.ac.uk/sites/default/files/clinical_radiology_curriculum_2021.pdf