Renal Medicine in the Oxford deanery has two base hospitals: Churchill Hospital in Oxford and Royal Berkshire in Reading. Each of these base hospitals cover satellite hospitals which draws work into the unit but they are not part of the registrar rotation. This hugely helps when deciding where to live as you not rotating around many hospitals which can greatly increase your commute.
Dedicated consultant led renal registrar teaching occurs monthly across the deanery.
Oxford can also boost that it is does the most pancreas transplantation work nationally with around 55 SPKs (simultaneous pancreas and Kidney) or PTAs (pancreas transplant alone) per annum. The development of a pancreas replacement MDT with endocrinologist, surgeons and transplant physicians you can learn about the options open to these rather unique set of patients. Oxford also does 200 kidney transplants of which around 28% are living donations. It dialysis programme consists of ~420 pts on Hemo and ~100 pts. Reading has ~420pts on dialysis and receives its transplant patients, from Oxford, 6 months out.
Both hospitals have dedicated renal wards with facilities to dialyse and plasma exchange at the bedside.
The Thames Valley itself is a wonderful place to live and learn. With Oxford being a proud university city it offers excellent cultural and sporting activities to suit all tastes. The infamous Oxford Tube is a 24 hours bus service to the heart of London which allows you to enjoy the benefits of the capital. Heathrow and Birmingham International Airports are under an hour away to allow you to escape work on holidays. Its proximity to motorway network, via the M40, allows to you reach the North and South of England with relative ease.
Family life is fantastic as the countryside is on tap with walks and a great selection of ‘gastro pubs.’
Overall, Renal medicine in the Thames valley offers fantastic clinical training, with dedicated consultants supporting you at every turn in an area of the country that not many trainees want to leave when they finish.