Abstract
Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery is unique specialty requiring dual qualification in
medicine and dentistry. Since the inception of national recruitment a decade ago,
only 70% of available posts have been filled. In a 2019 round, this was a worrying
30%. Questionnaires were sent to trainees at various levels via the Facebook JTG and
Registrar groups. Data were collected on debt experience, and awareness of and access
to financial assistance. We received 66 responses. The most important sources of funding
were NHS work (46%), followed by student finance (25%). Of those surveyed, 79% were
‘concerned’ or ‘very concerned’ about debt. Respondents were interested in receiving
more information on a range of sources of funding, such as non-NHS bursaries (81%),
NHS bursaries (59%) and NHS work in OMFS (56%). Respondents identified the financial
impact (44%), and the effect of personal and family life (41%) as the two biggest
drawbacks to second-degree studies. In view of the persistent recruitment issues at
the ST3 level in OMFS, it is important to address concerns surrounding second-degree
study. Awareness of available support must be raised in order to safeguard the future
of our specialty in its current format.
Keywords
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References
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Article Info
Publication History
Published online: November 16, 2021
Accepted:
November 9,
2021
Identification
Copyright
© 2021 The British Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
