Criteria for the award of CCT

The following criteria have been agreed with the PMETB for the award of the Certificate of Completion of Training (CCT) in public health:

Required are:

GMC Registration

Full or limited registration as a medical practitioner with the General Medical Council of the United Kingdom throughout the whole period of training.

 

General Professional Training

24 months (whole time equivalent) experience in supervised medical training posts after obtaining full registration (or its overseas equivalent i.e. post internship)

  1. At least 12 months (whole time equivalent) must be in specialties involving direct clinical responsibility for patient care.
  2. Training time counted for General Professional Training must not also be counted for Higher Specialist Training.
  3. If more than 12 months (whole time equivalent) of General Professional Training or Higher Specialist Training is counted from outside the European Economic Area the CCT will be endorsed to show that fact.

 

Higher Specialist Training

In order to gain a CCT trainees must have satisfactorily completed 48 months of supervised training in posts approved by the Faculty of Public Health or other competent bodies in the European Economic Area.

  • All the training periods for higher specialist training are given as whole time equivalents, and training which is less than half time (calculated on a weekly basis) will not be counted.
  • At least 24 months must be in training posts in the United Kingdom .
  • Up to 24 months may be undertaken in prospectively approved training post either in the European Economic Area or outside the European Economic Area.
  • At least 12 months must be spent in Type I higher specialist training programme, obtained in open competition.
  • The training must include a continuous block of at least 3 months in communicable disease control and environmental health, in a service location within the NHS (or equivalent in each country of the United Kingdom) or the Defense Medical Services.
  • The training must include at least 12 months in a service location within the NHS (or equivalent in each country of the United Kingdom) or the Defense Medical Services in addition to the 3 months in communicable disease control and environmental health.
  • The training must exclude periods of leave of absence in excess of three months (whole time equivalent) summing over the whole training period. If absences of lesser duration occur, appropriate efforts must be made to fill resulting gaps in the programme as assessed by the RITA process. If this is not achieved the CCT date will be modified accordingly.
  • The training must exclude time spent on academic courses of study for Part A MFPH examination, whether taken full time or part time.
  • Satisfactory completion of training must be attested by a completed final RITA form.
  • Training time counted for higher specialist training must not also be counted for General Professional Training.
  • The training may include:
    • Either one year research if not involving service public health
    • Or up to two years if it is health services research with service public health involvement.
  • The training may include up to 3 months in an acting NHS consultant post in the Specialist Registrar's own deanery, prospectively agreed by the deanery training co-ordinator with a named educational supervisor, with the Specialist Registrar retaining their Specialist Registrar contract and NTN.
  • The training may include up to 12 months in formal prospectively recognised Locum Appointment - Training posts (LAT) and fixed term training appointments (FTTAs). Exceptionally, this time may be extended if approved by the Education/Faculty Advisors' Committee and postgraduate dean.
  • The training may include up to 24 months spent in supervised training posts in the field of public health medicine in the United Kingdom or overseas before the Trainee enters the higher specialist training programme, if this is recommended by the local Specialty Training Committee and approved by the Education/Faculty Advisers' Committee of the Faculty of Public Health (so-called ' retrospective recognition ' of training).

A provision in the criteria for the CCT is related to leave taken during the training time: absence from the training programme for any reason for up to a total of 3 months (summed throughout training) is acceptable without postponement of the provisional CCT date. A total period (sum) greater than three months will postpone the provisional CCT date accordingly.

 

Membership of the Faculty of Public Health

The trainee must have been admitted to Membership of the Faculty of Public Health of the Royal Colleges of Physicians of the United Kingdom either by examination or as a result of the formal recognition arrangements for MFPH (Ireland).

 

Required documents

The Faculty recommends the award of CCT to the PMETB or the UK Voluntary Register when the Form G has been received from the postgraduate dean, and Form 3 from the faculty adviser.

Form 3 is a confirmation by the Faculty Adviser that all of the CCT criteria have been met. Final year trainees should be fully familiar with the criteria to ensure that they have been met in every particular. While it is not necessary to be on a training programme at the time of recommendation, it is necessary to be in good standing on the GMC Medical Register and on the Faculty's Membership rolls.

The Faculty does not normally know that a final RITA has been held or a Form G issued until it receives its copy from the dean. The Education Department now routinely confirms to the trainee that the Form G has been received. When the Faculty Education Department has received and reviewed all necessary documents, the PMETB/Voluntary Register will be notified that the trainee has been recommended for the award of the CCT.

The PMETB/Voluntary Register requires an application form and fee. This form is sent by the Faculty to trainees at the same time that notification goes to the PMETB/Voluntary Register.