Ireland vs UK, Which is better?

masterboy123

I am about to graduate from medical school (Budapest, Hungary) now and thinking where to start my career in UK or Republic of Ireland?

I would to like hear thoughts of different people.
How is the work and experience in Ireland?
how is the standard of living in Ireland, is it better than in England?
how enjoyable it is to work in Ireland and how are they people??
how are the starting salaries in Ireland for a junior doctors and other important factors in the work between these two countries.

Anyone please?

masterboy123

Anyone please?? It would be very kind of you all, who can share some of their experiences.

ShadyLane

Just to be sure I understand - are you seeking internship or SHO position? You say here you're about to finish medical school but in another thread you have said you're finishing up your intern year. Are you an EU citizen? If not, that can severely limit any chance you would have of getting an intern spot here in Ireland. Applications for both internships and scheme SHO jobs are now closed. If you're looking for a non-scheme SHO job you might still have luck, but I'm not familiar with that process.

As for quality of life - I can only speak for Ireland, since I haven't lived or worked in the UK. Morale is quite low in a lot of the hospitals with ongoing issues of excessive working hours, pay cuts, overtime not being paid, etc. Check out the facebook page of the "24 hours is a enough" campaign for more information. That said, I've had a (mostly) great time working as an intern here, in large part to the people I work with.

Your best bet would be to visit both countries and get a feel for the culture of the cities and hospitals. If you're applying for SHO positions you can do this while you're over for interviews. (That's assuming there are interviews for the non-scheme jobs?)

masterboy123

ShadyLane wrote: »

Just to be sure I understand - are you seeking internship or SHO position? You say here you're about to finish medical school but in another thread you have said you're finishing up your intern year. Are you an EU citizen? If not, that can severely limit any chance you would have of getting an intern spot here in Ireland. Applications for both internships and scheme SHO jobs are now closed. If you're looking for a non-scheme SHO job you might still have luck, but I'm not familiar with that process.

As for quality of life - I can only speak for Ireland, since I haven't lived or worked in the UK. Morale is quite low in a lot of the hospitals with ongoing issues of excessive working hours, pay cuts, overtime not being paid, etc. Check out the facebook page of the "24 hours is a enough" campaign for more information. That said, I've had a (mostly) great time working as an intern here, in large part to the people I work with.

Your best bet would be to visit both countries and get a feel for the culture of the cities and hospitals. If you're applying for SHO positions you can do this while you're over for interviews. (That's assuming there are interviews for the non-scheme jobs?)

Thanks for taking out your precious time for writing.
The internship is included in my medical degree at Semmelweis University (Budapest, Hungary)and I am going to finish my intern year in August this year. I am not an EU citizen but I am married to an EU citizen and I have EU family card.

I am looking for SHO posts or BST programme. I am interested in Psychiatry. When will be post for SHO opens again?
Also, what is non-scheme SHO job? Sorry, i do not how things are working in Ireland. How many hours/week are SHO allowed to work?

I am unable to find the page "24 hours is a enough" on facebook. Is this the correct name?

You mentioned overtimes not being paid, does it happen in Private hospitals too? How is the behavior of other colleagues in the hospital? Is it more mixed nationality co-workers or you're working with mostly Irish people?

From other forums I came to know that it is very hard in UK and requires 2 years of Foundation before I can enter into a Specialty Programme. Hence, i think Ireland is a better option.

So, I am hoping to get a place somewhere in Ireland from September 2013. What would you suggest me to try and secure a position for myself?

Have a good weekend.

ShadyLane

Basic Specialty Training positions are commonly known as "scheme jobs" here. As far as I know, the BST in Psychiatry is a 3-year process - someone please correct me if I'm wrong. The application process for BST spots for 2013 is already closed, with jobs commencing in July. Applications for July 2014 should open sometime around Christmas. However, if you're looking for a job in September, you can look at those jobs outside of the training scheme (a non-scheme job).

Hours worked depend entirely on the job. Surgical SHOs commonly work upwards of 80 hours per week. I would imagine Psychiatry SHOs work more reasonable hours, but this should be confirmed by someone familiar with the job.

As interns we wouldn't have any exposure to working in private hospitals, so I can't answer your question there. Things like overtime payments, atmosphere and diversity of colleagues varies greatly from hospital to hospital.

You might find these links helpful:
http://www.irishpsychiatry.ie/Postgrad_Training.aspx
https://www.facebook.com/groups/566600706700681/
http://www.irishpsychiatry.ie/Libraries/PGT_Documents/BST_Handbook_June_2010.sflb.ashx
http://www.hse.ie/eng/staff/Jobs/Job_Search/Medical_Dental/nchd/SHO_Registrar/

masterboy123

ShadyLane wrote: »

Basic Specialty Training positions are commonly known as "scheme jobs" here. As far as I know, the BST in Psychiatry is a 3-year process - someone please correct me if I'm wrong. The application process for BST spots for 2013 is already closed, with jobs commencing in July. Applications for July 2014 should open sometime around Christmas. However, if you're looking for a job in September, you can look at those jobs outside of the training scheme (a non-scheme job).

Hours worked depend entirely on the job. Surgical SHOs commonly work upwards of 80 hours per week. I would imagine Psychiatry SHOs work more reasonable hours, but this should be confirmed by someone familiar with the job.

As interns we wouldn't have any exposure to working in private hospitals, so I can't answer your question there. Things like overtime payments, atmosphere and diversity of colleagues varies greatly from hospital to hospital.

You might find these links helpful:
http://www.irishpsychiatry.ie/Postgrad_Training.aspx
https://www.facebook.com/groups/566600706700681/
http://www.irishpsychiatry.ie/Libraries/PGT_Documents/BST_Handbook_June_2010.sflb.ashx
http://www.hse.ie/eng/staff/Jobs/Job_Search/Medical_Dental/nchd/SHO_Registrar/

It's very sad to know from the Facebook group that doctors are not getting paid for their overtime. I hope the associated council help us in this matter.

I will be very interested in a non-scheme job because as you mentioned BST jobs will start in 2014. What kind of job titles should i look for? I think SHO posts, please correct me if I am wrong or do I have to look for NCHD jobs? I am unaware of the terms used in Ireland. From this thread only I came to know that I can apply even for SHO jobs because previously I thought SHO jobs requires few years of experience. So, now I have started to know a bit of medical health care system there.

Besides HSE website, what other website should I visit to apply for job places?

Also, how's the scope of Psychiatry field in Ireland? Do they need psychiatrists or is it a low income field there?

drzhivago

masterboy123 wrote: »

It's very sad to know from the Facebook group that doctors are not getting paid for their overtime. I hope the associated council help us in this matter.

I will be very interested in a non-scheme job because as you mentioned BST jobs will start in 2014. What kind of job titles should i look for? I think SHO posts, please correct me if I am wrong or do I have to look for NCHD jobs? I am unaware of the terms used in Ireland. From this thread only I came to know that I can apply even for SHO jobs because previously I thought SHO jobs requires few years of experience. So, now I have started to know a bit of medical health care system there.

Besides HSE website, what other website should I visit to apply for job places?

Also, how's the scope of Psychiatry field in Ireland? Do they need psychiatrists or is it a low income field there?

Jobs

www.publicjobs.ie (you can register here for alerts about jobs)

www.medicaljobs.ie

www.hospitajobs.ie

masterboy123

drzhivago wrote: »

Jobs

www.publicjobs.ie (you can register here for alerts about jobs)

www.medicaljobs.ie

www.hospitajobs.ie

Thanks for the links.
Do I search for SHO positions or NCHD? I am a fresh graduate with 1 year of internship experience only.

Vorsprung

masterboy123 wrote: »

Thanks for the links.
Do I search for SHO positions or NCHD? I am a fresh graduate with 1 year of internship experience only.

Nchd is an umbrella term for interns, SHOs and registrars. With a years recognised experienced, you can apply for SHO jobs.

drzhivago

MAsterboy

I have just reread one of your posts again and I fear you are at a disadvantage on the double in Ireland

First you are not eligible to apply for Intern jobs here as you graduate with FULL registration in Hungary, I appreciate that you have done your form of internship there but you do not have paid working experience as a doctor and thus when you are applying for SHO posts you are competing against people who have 1 year work experience in Ireland

Second problem is you are not finished your internship until August when July is the start point for posts here so you will have missed the start date

You only hope then is that some jobs are not filled, however if these are not filled in may it is likely the HSE will try to fill these with doctors from Pakistan and South Africa and hospitals will not be allowed to try and fill the gaps themselves. This happened two years ago when there were some posts vacant and Irish nationals who qualified here (and had returned from travelling abroad) were not allowed to apply for the posts because they had been promised to the Pakistani recruitment drive

masterboy123

drzhivago wrote: »

MAsterboy

I have just reread one of your posts again and I fear you are at a disadvantage on the double in Ireland

First you are not eligible to apply for Intern jobs here as you graduate with FULL registration in Hungary, I appreciate that you have done your form of internship there but you do not have paid working experience as a doctor and thus when you are applying for SHO posts you are competing against people who have 1 year work experience in Ireland

Second problem is you are not finished your internship until August when July is the start point for posts here so you will have missed the start date

You only hope then is that some jobs are not filled, however if these are not filled in may it is likely the HSE will try to fill these with doctors from Pakistan and South Africa and hospitals will not be allowed to try and fill the gaps themselves. This happened two years ago when there were some posts vacant and Irish nationals who qualified here (and had returned from travelling abroad) were not allowed to apply for the posts because they had been promised to the Pakistani recruitment drive

drzhivago
Many thanks for this useful information.
Actually, I was told by a friend who is working in Ireland that even if I finish my intership in the end of June 2013, I would not be able to start working from July because registration with IMC and arranging papers will take 2-3 months time. And I should focus for posts that will be available from January 2014 (the second round).
What do you suggest me? Because even now I have the chance to get my degree in the June end. Otherwise, I planned to start working from January 2014 as SHO. Or as you mentioned, if I am lucky enough I may get a job in between. I am interested in Pyschiatry and I heard there's a demand in this field at the moment.

And how about getting myself into a BST programme? Will it be any easier?

Thank you.
Have a great week