Details are subject to change due to educational reasons and service reconfiguration.
HEE WM covers one of the largest regions, both in term of geographical size and numbers of trainees. We are responsible for postgraduate medical and dental training in the West Midlands. The region extends from Stoke-on-Trent in the North to Coventry in the South.
The West Midlands has six potential places in the School at ST1 year, split around three centres: Coventry, Stoke-on-Trent and Wolverhampton.
Trainees are divided between the three centres and placed according to their personal preference, availability of places and ranking at interview. ST1s allocated to Stoke-on-Trent generally join the northern rotation and those in Coventry generally join the eastern rotation (see below). Trainees allocated to Wolverhampton will proceed to either the east or the north rotation.
Due to the large area covered by the West Midlands Deanery, the various hospitals have been grouped geographically into:
· North Rotation: Stoke-on-Trent, Wolverhampton, Walsall* & Shrewsbury
· East Rotation: City Hospital*, Coventry, Warwick & Heartlands Hospital
· Birmingham ‘Pool’ Rotation: for ST2 & ST3 only (see below)
All rotations in the West Midlands region have the same basic structure. Following the ST1 year trainees proceed to a north or east hospital for the ST2 year. During the ST2 Year the trainee will be seconded for 2 weeks each to molecular and neuropathology, then 1 week each of BCH and Perinatal Pathology and 6 weeks of gynae cytology. ST3 trainees are allocated to the Birmingham ‘pool’ and spend 5 months split between 3 specialist centres (ROH, BWH & QE for Liver). Medical Renal Pathology is covered as a 4 week block within your generic rotations. For the ST4 and ST5 years trainees return to ‘non-pool’ hospitals.
Some trainees prefer to choose a central place to live and commute to the various hospitals, whilst others move around. After your ST2 year you may even decide to branch away from ‘general’ histopathology and pursue a career in paediatric or forensic pathology. The training for these specialities is separate and the relevant literature will need to be consulted.
*Note due to a merger of some hospital pathology services into the Black Country Pathology Services, Manor Hospital Walsall, Russell's Hall in Dudley and City Hospital will be merging into the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust and trainees will be based at Wolverhampton.
Website Updated 08.07.2021