Healthcare Careers

Medicine - Family doctor (GP)

What is it?

When someone tells you ‘I’ve been to the doctor’, they usually mean their family doctor or GP.

GPs work in the community, treating sick people and helping them lead healthier lives. If someone’s worried about their health, it’s their GP (General Practitioner) they turn to.

If you’re a good GP, you offer much more than ‘just’ health advice. You support and encourage patients in good times and in bad.

Every patient is unique. Someone with an infected finger may need just one visit to sort out the problem. Someone with a long-term condition like sickle cell disease, or someone who’s sad because they’ve lost a loved one, will have different needs.

Some problems become familiar, some crop up maybe once in your career. You never know what today will bring.

A GP needs to be someone their patients trust and feel comfortable with. After all, it’s a relationship that could last a lifetime.

What are the good bits?

• Varied and interesting work
• Make a real difference to people’s lives
• Flexible – full-time, part-time, jobs overseas
• Chance to run your own practice as a business

What about pay?

£20,000 – £120,000+

What skills and interests do I need?

• Interested in science and people
• Good communication skills
• Hardworking, dedicated
• Motivated, curious

What qualifications/training will I need?

After GCSEs you need to stay on at school or go to college to study science – for example, Chemistry and Biology at AS and A2 level plus another A level and AS level. Some places accept alternative qualifications. You’ll study Medicine for five years at university, then carry on studying for several more years while you work in hospitals and GP surgeries.

Compiled with reference to:
www.nhscareers.nhs.uk
www.nobarriers2uni.org

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