Obtaining a physician post at Air Ambulance Charity Kent Surrey Sussex (KSS) is something that we know is very desirable and we receive a large number of applications every time we advertise. Whilst recognising it’s a very competitive process, here is the advice I would give to people at various stages of their career when thinking about applying.

Before I start, the below is advice for applying for a stand-alone post with KSS and does not necessarily cross over to national PHEM training programme applications. I’d like to think it’s good general advice but if you’re thinking about applying for IBTPHEM training, it would be sensible to seek separate advice from someone (or ideally a few people) who have recently been through that process.

For those who are still medical students or are resident doctors in the early stages of their career, the most important advice is that we select doctors largely from the specialities of Anaesthetics, Emergency Medicine and Intensive Care Medicine. There are a few exceptions for doctors who come from specific military backgrounds but largely these are the three main ‘feeder’ specialties. Regardless of your ‘base’ specialty, you’ll need to have at least 6 months experience of both Anaesthetics and Emergency Medicine and have gained the Initial Assessment of Competence in Anaesthesia. For those in the early stages of their career, the most important bit is to ensure you’re building a strong foundation in your base specialty, regardless of which it is. All our best doctors are excellent in their in-hospital specialty.

For those who are applying from abroad, we will expect an equivalent level of professional training but given the differences in training programmes, if you are concerned about whether you meet the professional requirements, we’d encourage you to contact us before making an application.

Whilst we are keen to see ‘commitment to pre-hospital care’ that doesn’t mean to the exclusion of the other aspects of training that support your in-hospital practice, and it definitely doesn’t mean taking part in often expensive pre-hospital training courses. We’re more interested in audit or service improvement work related to the types of patients we treat (critically ill and injured medical and trauma patients) and especially where that relates to the first 24 hours or so of their care.

Prior pre-hospital experience does add value for us but less in terms of caring for pre-hospital patients and more in terms of gaining an understanding of what working within the pre-hospital environment feels like, what the patient journey looks and feels like before they reach hospital and how the ambulance service functions.

A demonstrable ability at being a good team worker is very helpful and there are myriad (enjoyable) ways you might demonstrate that.

For those further on in their training and starting to think about making an application, it’s worth bearing in mind that the short-listing process is probably the highest hurdle and so time spent understanding and then filling out the application form is invaluable. Consider whether it would be worth looking at the application form a year or two before you might be ready to apply and think about where you need to focus your efforts to ensure you can make the strongest application. Whilst we review the process each year and often slightly modify the process based on what we’ve learned, there are not usually dramatic changes.

Before applying, many people will want to join us on an observer shift and it’s true that this can provide an insight into the reality of what working for KSS is like. However, in our opinion an observer day on a clinical shift is less valuable than being a guest at one of our clinical governance days. Bear in mind a couple of things though, there is a long waiting list and, in part because of that, we are only able to accept physician observers at ST4 level and above (5 years post qualification) and you must attend a CGD before being added to the waiting list for an observer shift. Whilst joining us as an observer adds benefit in terms of making clear on the application you understand how we work at KSS, it adds only a little in terms of the overall scoring of the application.

Currently we advertise via an NHS Trust and so use the NHS application form (Trac). We create a job description for the post, with essential and desirable attributes for the candidates, and Trac then uses that to create a scoring matrix. Given the competitiveness for the posts, you’ll need to be scoring highly in most if not all the domains on the job description. To give yourself the best chance, make sure your application form demonstrates that and use the ‘free text’ boxes wherever you can to make sure it’s clear to those reading how you fulfil each domain, if the more standard boxes haven’t provided you that opportunity. Remember though, the short listers will be reading many, many applications and so writing War and Peace into the free text box isn’t likely to generate the outcome you want.

There are parts of the criteria that are obvious and some that take a little more thought in how you can demonstrate them. Leadership and management experience are easier if you’re already a Consultant but harder if you’re still in a Specialty Training post. If you’re struggling to get practical experience in an area, think about how you might cover that off with training courses or similar that, as well as supporting your application, will support future in-hospital Consultant posts.

Alongside the essential and desirable criteria, we’re going to want to understand why you’re applying. This sounds obvious but we’d like to know why you want a HEMS job at all, and why you want one at KSS specifically. Think about what you’ll gain from the post with us and potentially what you think we’ll gain from having you.

For those already in Consultant posts, it’s never too late to apply and we’re supportive of applicants regardless of seniority. Consider all the advice above but on top of this, try to consider the breadth of experience you’ve built, both clinical and non-clinical, and how that might support you in a HEMS doctor role. Endeavour to demonstrate that in the application form and specifically in relation to the essential and desirable criteria. We feel all clinicians regardless of seniority will benefit from a HEMS secondment at KSS; consider what it is you’re hoping to get out of the secondment as part of your professional development as a Consultant and think about how you can demonstrate that at different parts of the application process.

Whilst I wish you success, it’s a simple fact of number of posts available versus number of applications that your application might not be successful and for many people who have always succeeded, that can be challenging. We do our best to provide feedback, but the anonymous nature of the process makes it difficult to be too specific. If you’re not successful, perhaps ask a trusted colleague to review your form against the desirable and essential criteria and see where you might improve for the next attempt.

Once through short-listing you’ll be invited to a selection half-day which is different to most medical selection processes you’ll have been involved in. Whilst we evolve things between every selection event, during the half day we are likely to ask you to take part in some clinical scenarios, a fitness test, a short presentation (the title of which you’ll receive beforehand) and

an interview. The clinical scenarios are designed to look at characteristics we are interested in (team working, communication and nontechnical skills as examples) and are designed to be fair to those with and without prior pre-hospital experience – we’re not expecting you to demonstrate you already know how to be a HEMS doctor. The fitness test is simply a test of whether you can undertake the physical aspects of the role, not a test of super-human fitness, and is manageable by everyone with a moderate degree of fitness. The interview will be more in keeping with what you’re used to in terms of being asked questions by a small panel from KSS. The questions vary every time we run it but standard interview advice applies to this one too: it’s invaluable to have people you trust practice interview you and then provide honest, constructive feedback before the day. We aim to keep the interview as ‘conversational’ as we can and try to remember we’re very keen to see the real, relaxed you. There aren’t any perfect answers and the way you answer the question is often more important than the specifics of the answer.

I hope the above is valuable. Good luck in your application!

Duncan Bootland

Executive Medical Director

Air Ambulance Charity Kent Surrey Sussex