📝 Introduction

We spoke to Sir Sam Everington, a leading healthcare policy doctor in the UK, and Dr Steve Taylor, a major voice involved in influencing healthcare policy, about what inspired them to pursue this path and their experiences in the field.

🤔 What is healthcare policy?

Being a doctor in healthcare policy means using your clinical insight and experience to improve the laws and regulations affecting healthcare. It is an incredibly varied career, and what the role involves depends greatly on where you work!

Some doctors in policy roles work within NHS England, drafting national strategies and advising on workforce planning. For these, a typical day involves multiple meetings reviewing the current evidence and guidelines, as well as spending time drafting new guidelines, and eventually presenting these to more senior stakeholders.

Others work in Think Tanks or Universities, conducting clinical research and interviewing clinicians and patients to shape policy recommendations. Their work often includes research, writing papers and blogs, and presenting at conferences.

Some policy doctors may work in advocacy roles for organisations such as the BMA, where they develop campaigns and help compose BMA responses to issues, as well as planning advocacy events. Finally, some policy doctors work internationally with the WHO or NGOs!

🌍What is the difference between Public health and Healthcare Policy?

Healthcare policy focuses on the laws, funding, and regulations that shape healthcare systems. It has no formal training pathway and is often entered through fellowships, academia, or policy roles. Public health, by contrast, has a specialty training programme (open to both medics and non-medics) and is centred on improving population health through prevention, health promotion, and research.

In short, public health is about keeping populations healthy, while healthcare policy is about organising and regulating the system that delivers care.

For example, during COVID-19 pandemic, public health managed testing, tracing, and vaccination, whereas healthcare policy determined vaccine rollout priorities, lockdown rules, and NHS resource allocation. Though distinct, the two fields complement each other and frequently intersect.

⚖️ What’s In It For You?

  • Broader impact – the potential to improve care for thousands or even millions of people!

 

  • Work-life balance – more predictable hours than clinical roles.

 

  • Diverse career paths – with the potential to work in government, NGOs, international organisations or academia, this career gives you the opportunity to shape your career in line with your interests.

 

  • Intellectually stimulating – gives you the chance to make a difference in complex, multifactorial issues.

 

  • Leadership potential, and the chance to influence policies that impact people nationally.

 

  • Flexibility – some policy doctors work full-time in non-clinical roles, whereas others blend their clinical and policy work.

👶 How to Get Started in Medical School

  • Join the BMA in your area – the best way to experience policy debates and see if a career in policy is for you!

 

  • Get involved in quality improvement (QI) projects or audits – develops research skills and helps you get more publications! Tip: focus on audits exploring broader issues such as access to care – this demonstrates an interest in public health and helps you understand how the healthcare system functions as a whole.

 

  • Run for student rep or MedSoc positions – most universities will have student councils, ethics boards or curriculum committees that mimic how healthcare policy is made nationally. These are incredibly useful to help build your leadership skills and advocacy.

 

  • Write – many doctors who have very successful careers in policy started by writing about healthcare topics, so get involved in your medical school’s magazine, or even submit a piece you’ve written to the Student BMJ.

 

  • Recommended blogs – Health Service Journal (HSJ) and the King’s Fund Blog are goldmines of policy news! These resources improve your understanding of how the NHS works and keep you up to date with policy changes that affect patients.

🏛️ Relevant Internships/Short Courses

 

  • LSE Summer School in Health Economics & Policy – a 6-week online course, with a time commitment of 6-9 hours per week. It explores healthcare challenges, health economics, and how policy is designed, implemented, and evaluated.

 

  • Parliamentary internships (via Royal Colleges or directly with MPs).

 

  • Shadowing a Director of Public Health (DPH) – reach out to your local council’s Public Health team or email local Directors of Public Health (details often on council websites). This provides real-world insight into how health policy is developed.

 

  • WHO Internships – for any 4th or 5th year medical students at least 20 years old (or doctors who apply within 6 months of qualifying). The internship is 6-24 weeks long, although this depends on the specific WHO unit. Has a range of possible internships related to public health and policy, but can be competitive.

 

💻 Intercalations 

Not necessary, but some useful policy-relevant intercalations include:

  • MSc Health Policy – LSE
  • iBSc Global Health UCL, KCL, Bristol, Imperial, Edinburgh, Manchester, QMUL
  • iBSc Social Policy – Bristol
  • MSc International Health – Leeds
  • MSc Public Health – KCL, Imperial, Edinburgh, Bristol, LSHTM

🎓Optional: Postgraduate Degrees

Some doctors go straight into these after F2, or later alongside specialty training. These aren’t necessary, but can be interesting and give you an edge when applying to jobs in healthcare policy!

  • Master of Public Health (MPH) – many Universities offer this, including Imperial, UCL, KCL.
  • MSc Health Policy – LSE, KCL, Bristol, City St George’s, LSHTM.

🕑 Timeline of Getting Into Policy

The good news is that you don’t need to jump straight into policy after F2! Many doctors enter after specialty training, academia, or NHS management roles.

👩‍⚕️ Foundation & Early Training

Tips for making the most of your F1/F2 rotations:

  • Take a Public Health F1/F2 rotation, if available.

 

  • Get involved in QI/audit projects that look at system redesign or access to care.

 

  • Write for BMJ Opinion – simply submit any healthcare-related article of less than 800 words, and it may be accepted and uploaded online. Excellent for developing writing skills and strengthening your portfolio.

 

  • Get involved with the DAUK committee, or the BMA Junior Doctors Committee.

 

  • Attend health policy conferences – e.g: NHS Confed Expo, Faculty of Public Health Annual Conference (requires membership with Faculty of Public Health first).

 

  • UK Foundation Programme Fellowship – recruits F2 doctors into a part-time fellowship that allows you to focus on an area you’re interested in. It is highly competitive, but an excellent stepping stone into future policy roles.

 

  • Network and seek mentors in your region – contact doctors you know who have had policy fellowships, or successful doctors in healthcare policy – they can give you invaluable advice and insight – LinkedIn is a great place for this!

🧾 After F2 – How Do You Actually Get a Job in Policy?

There’s no clear-cut route that you have to take, but there are 2 common routes for doctors wanting to work in policy:

Option 1: Fellowships – the most common route

  • National Medical Director’s Clinical Fellow Scheme at FMLM – a 1-year paid position in organisations like NHS England, NICE, GMC. Can apply after F2, and helps you develop leadership, policy and communication skills. Competitive, but a great route to get into policy jobs later.
  • Civil Service Fast Track Stream – Health Policy – for final year students or graduates. Have many different schemes to choose from – most relevant: Government Policy Scheme.
  • Academic Clinical Fellowships (ACFs) – perfect for doctors wanting to combine research and clinical practice. You can apply after F2; the scheme offers a variety of positions, including ones in public health and health services research. This typically lasts for 3 years.

 

Option 2: Direct Entry into Health Policy Roles – if you have strong experience. Apply directly to:

  • Policy Officer/Advisor roles at:
    • NHS England
    • Think tanks (King’s Fund, Nuffield Trust)
    • Royal Colleges or the GMC
  • Health strategy or analyst roles in NHS Trusts
  • Academic research roles in health policy research – usually with Universities.

🎯Key Skills for Healthcare Policy

Working in public health and healthcare policy requires a broad skill set. Leadership, teamwork, and strong communication are just as essential here as they are in direct patient care. Professionals in this field often coordinate across multiple teams, facilitating projects, and engaging with a wide range of stakeholders, from government bodies to community groups.

Key skills include:

  • Administrative and organisational abilities – managing programmes, resources, and people effectively.

 

  • Analytical skills – interpreting data and evidence to inform decisions.

 

  • Written and verbal communication – conveying complex information clearly to both professionals and the public.

 

  • Negotiation – reaching agreements and balancing competing interests.

 

  • Decision-making – making informed choices that can affect entire populations.

Developing and refining these skills is crucial for anyone considering a career in this area, as they underpin the ability to create meaningful change in health systems and communities.

💡Top Tips

  • Start small – while it may seem like an intimidating career to enter, starting small and getting involved in local projects, even when you’re in medical school, can develop your leadership skills and critical voice, and be hugely helpful when applying for policy jobs in the future.

 

  • Write, write, write – the easiest way to develop your policy voice and critical thinking.

 

  • Build your network – follow health policy experts on Linkedin, attend NHS events and get involved with your local BMA – all of these will help improve your personal brand, help you meet inspiring people and potentially lead to opportunities in the future!

❌ Disadvantages

  • Slower gratification – policy changes often take a long time to develop and even longer to impact patients.

 

  • Less patient contact – some doctors miss the ‘hands-on’ aspect of medicine, but many roles allow a balance between clinical and policy work, offering flexibility.

 

  • Can feel bureaucratic – policy work typically has multiple layers of approval and politics, which can feel frustrating.

 

  • Harder to enter without mentorship – there are very few structured pathways to enter the world of healthcare policy.

 

  • Lower salary than clinical practice – at least early on.

📑 Conclusion

Overall, a career in policy can be incredibly fulfilling, and can help you make a meaningful impact on a large number of people! It’s a career you can get into at any point of your clinical career, and can be flexible around any clinical commitments! However it can feel bureaucratic and can take longer to make an impact, so joining the BMA or getting involved in student councils can help you get a valuable taste of this career and help you decide if it’s right for you!

📚 Resources

 

Thanks for reading. If you have any comments or suggestions, please feel free to share them below and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can!

Reviewed by Sir Sam Everington

A GP in East London and the chair of Tower Hamlet’s Clinical Commissioning Group.

For further thoughts, contact sam.everington1@nhs.net

Reviewed by Dr Steve Taylor

Dr Taylor is a GP, DAUK GP Spokesperson, and involved in influencing healthcare policy.

For further thoughts, contact steve-lisa@msn.com