Paediatric Surgery ST3 - Specialty Specific Application Form Questions

Supporting Information

1. Career Progression, CCT / CESR or Specialist Register

Do you already hold, or are you eligible to hold a CCT/CESR in Paediatric Surgery or are you currently eligible for the specialist register in this specialty? (Yes | No)

2. Membership Examination

In order to be eligible for appointment to this specialty, you must have successfully completed your MRCS by examination (full qualification) by 5pm on Tuesday 15 April 2025.

At the time of application have you successfully completed MRCS by examination (full qualification)? (Yes | No) 
Answer NO if you have not yet successfully complete all parts of the examination.

3. Additional Information

Would you like to opt in to receive email notifications of recommended Paediatric Surgery courses for ST3 level trainees e.g. Paediatric Surgery Bootcamp? (Yes | No) 

Please note:-This is not a comprehensive service, only a limited number of emails containing details of specific courses will be sent, applicants should therefore continue to refer to existing sources of information regarding available courses. 

Self-assessment

1. Instructions for completing the Self Assessment Form

Listed below are the 14 Self-Assessment questions that appear on the application form along with the possible responses to each question and details of suitable evidence to substantiate your responses.

All supporting evidence will be uploaded to a secure server after submission of your application.

If the interviewers are unable to verify that your evidence matches the answers you provided on your application form you will not be awarded any marks for those criteria.

If it is subsequently discovered that any statement is false or misleading, evidence will be collected and you may be referred to a Probity Panel.

Question 1

By the end of July 2025, or by completion of Core Training if this is later, how many months will you have spent in total in Paediatric Surgery posts? Please do not include any other posts. Please do not include any Foundation year’s experience or overseas Foundation equivalent

• 60+ months or < 4 months : 0
• 48 to 59 months : 2
• 30 to 47 months : 4
• 4 to 29 months : 8

Evidence:

• Please provide full employment history from qualification date to present, including the specialty of each post and outline the reason for any gaps in employment along side specific evidence of the paediatric surgery post.  In order to do this please download the employment history section from your Oriel application form and upload to the Self Assessment portal (inclusive of the Employment history gaps, Employment History – time in specialty and Employment History – time in specialty/post type)
• Please provide evidence of completion of training posts
• For non-training posts please provide a copy of the front page of your contract of employment which includes dates
• Do not include Foundation year’s experience or overseas Foundation equivalence in your response

Question 2

By the end of July 2025, or by completion of Core Training if this is later, how many months will you have spent in total in Adult General Surgery in CT, LAT, LAS and Trust Doctor posts? Please do not include any other posts or posts that only provide general surgical experience when on call.

• < 6 months : 0
• 6 to 12 months : 1
• 13+ : 2

Evidence:

• Please provide evidence of completion of training posts
• For non-training posts please provide a copy of the front page of your contract of employment which includes dates

Question 3

By the end of July 2025, or by completion of Core Training if this is later, will you have been employed in a “stand alone” post in a Neonatal Unit; minimum of 3 months in post?

• No : 0
• Yes : 1

Evidence:

• Please provide evidence of completion of training posts
• For non-training posts please provide a copy of the front page of your contract of employment which includes dates

Question 4

By the end of July 2025, or by completion of Core Training if this is later, will you have been employed in a “stand alone” post in a Paediatric Intensive Care Unit; minimum of 3 months in post?

• No : 0
• Yes : 1

Evidence:

• Please provide evidence of completion of training posts
• For non-training posts please provide a copy of the front page of your contract of employment which includes dates

Question 5

At the time of application, are you able to demonstrate competence in the management of acutely unwell patients?  

• No : 0
• Yes : 1

Evidence:

Competence can be demonstrated:

• By providing evidence of completion of a relevant course including e.g. ATLS, ETC, or equivalent

OR

• By providing a statement from a supervisor confirming you have received local training and assessment in these skills

Question 6

At the time of application, are you able to demonstrate competence in the management of acutely unwell paediatric patients?  

• No : 0
• Yes : 1

Evidence:

Competence can be demonstrated:

• By providing evidence of completion of a relevant course including e.g. APLS PALS, EPLS, EPALS or equivalent

OR

• By providing a statement from a supervisor confirming you have received local training and assessment in these skills

Question 7

At the time of application, how many appendicectomies have you completed which have been done either STS or STU? These must be recorded via a signed consolidation sheet and recorded in a validated log book.

• None : 0
• 1 to 9 : 1
• 10 to 19 : 2
• 20 or more : 4

Evidence:

• You must provide full logbook evidence. Signed consolidation sheets from a validated logbook are acceptable.
• Please do not upload lists of cases in which appendicectomies are not clearly highlighted within them as evidence.  Scores may be negatively adjusted to reflect that your evidence is not clearly available to the Verifying Officers.

Question 8

At the time of application, how many 1st or Last author publications have you had published, or accepted for publication in any peer reviewed journal or a PubMed accredited publication? Do not include published abstracts, letters or case reports.

• None : 0
• One : 2
• 2 or more : 4

Evidence:

• Please provide a photocopy of the abstract of the publication on PubMed (proof must be provided) or copy of the acceptance letter.

Question 9

At the time of application, how many national/ international presentations have you given as First Author? Do not include poster presentations.

• None : 0
• One : 1
• 2 or more : 2

Evidence:

• Please provide a copy of the relevant page of the meeting programme(s).

Question 10

At the time of application, how many full Quality Improvement Projects/complete audit cycles have you undertaken ie. first audit, institution of action plan, and second audit to assess impact of intervention all done by yourself

• None : 0
• 1 or more : 1

Evidence:

• Please provide a summary of the audit/QIP and your role in this (only the first uploaded audit cycle will be counted)
• Evidence to support the confirmation of Audit must include an Assessment of Audit with evidence of presentation of both cycles of the audit and/or certificate or letter from the institution in which the audit/QIP project was completed confirming the above

Question 11

How many Audits / Quality Improvement Projects have you undertaken within the last 24 months?

• None : 0
• One : 1
• 2 or more : 2

Evidence:

• Please provide a summary of the project and your role in this (only the first two audits / QIPs uploaded will be counted)
• Evidence to support the confirmation of Audit must include an Assessment of Audit with evidence of presentation of the audit and/or certificate or letter from the institution in which the audit/QIP project was

Question 12

At the time of application, have you completed and been awarded a UK higher research degree or equivalent (i.e. after production of a research based thesis and full examination)?

• No : 0
• MSc (thesis and examination) : 1
• PhD/MD : 3

Evidence:

• Intercalated degrees do not count
• Do not include MSc in Education (see next question)
• Do not include if your higher degree is equivalent to FRCS
• Please provide your degree certificate
• If your degree was taken outside the UK, you must also provide evidence of its equivalence (e.g. a letter from the institution confirming that it was awarded following production of a research based thesis and full examination)

Question 13

Please select the statement that best describes your involvement in formal teaching.

• I have not been engaged in a formal teaching role : 0
• I am regularly engaged in formal teaching : 1
• I am engaged on the faculty of a recognised medical course : 2
• I have a formal qualification in teaching – MSc Education/ PGcert /Dip Ed : 3

Evidence:

• Please provide evidence of engagement in formal teaching such as a letter from supervisor or an observation of teaching and evidence of feedback
• Please supply evidence to support your response including certificate to confirm you are Faculty.
• Please provide evidence of teaching qualification (Training the Trainers is NOT included)

Question 14

I confirm that I will provide the evidence to support the answers to this questionnaire in the manner outlined within the Applicant Handbook 

• No : 0
• Yes : 1

Evidence:

• Candidate has only provided specific documentation to support the specific questions asked within the Self Assessment questionnaire and has not provided excessive documentation or their full Portfolio