THE CONTRIBUTION OF THE FELLOWSHIP OF POSTGRADUATE MEDICINE TO MEDICINE 1919–2025

Abstract Sir William Osler Bt, considered by many the greatest figure in the medical world at the time, arrived in Britain in 1905 when he was appointed Regius Professor of Medicine at the University of Oxford, a post he held until his death in December 1919. His determination was not only to guide Oxford medicine but also to improve the standard of postgraduate medicine throughout Britain. Osler considered that without postgraduate education, a doctor was stale in five years, in a rut by ten years, and by twenty years so deeply in a rut that he would never be able to get out of it! Osler was particularly keen to meet the massive demand for postgraduate medical training after WWI. This was occasioned in part by the arrival of hundreds of medically qualified officers, particularly from the British Dominions and North America, who had served in WWI; all were seeking postgraduate medical education in London. Generously, the Dominion and US governments had given their medical officers extended study leave in London on their way back to civilian life. At this time, the London Medical Schools were far more interested in undergraduate education and devoted limited time to postgraduate education. For this reason, Osler founded the Post-graduate Medical Association in 1917 to coordinate all the clinical facilities which existed in London for “advanced studies” in Medicine. Osler was also a key contributor to the founding of the Inter-Allied Fellowship of Medicine on 14 January 1919, and he became its first President. The Times reported that “No man is so capable as Sir William Osler of drawing together British and American Medicine.” The amalgamation of the Fellowship of Medicine and Post-Graduate Medical Association took place on 9 October 1919 with considerable encouragement from Osler. The new organization was to be known as the Fellowship of Medicine and Post-graduate Medical Association. Osler became the first President but died on 29 December 1919. On 13 December 1944, its title was changed to the Fellowship of Postgraduate Medicine. From 7 April 1919, a pamphlet was published weekly (the Emergency Post-graduate scheme: weekly programme), which became the Bulletin in June 1919. The Bulletin announced daily hospital clinics, demonstrations, and lectures. During 1919, for example, 200 lectures were announced. The Bulletin of 15 February 1920 gave information on 888 clinics, demonstrations and lectures open to postgraduates in London. The Bulletin continued up to March 1925. In October 1925, the Bulletin became the Postgraduate Medical Journal. For several decades after its foundation, the Fellowship of Postgraduate Medicine had a pioneering role in developing, coordinating and providing postgraduate medical education. This also included helping postgraduates prepare for postgraduate examinations, such as the MRCP and FRCS examinations. With the establishment of other organizations, such as the British Postgraduate Medical Federation, postgraduate centres throughout the country, and the postgraduate activities of the Royal Colleges and Faculties, its role changed. The Fellowship continues to make important contributions to postgraduate medical education not only through the Postgraduate Medical Journal and Health Policy and Technology (founded 2012), but also through its sponsorship of research prizes (with the Society for Acute Medicine and the London Cardiovascular Society) and scientific and health policy conferences. For example, in February 2026, the Fellowship of Postgraduate Medicine will jointly sponsor a Conference with the Society for Acute Medicine on the Acute Medical Take: Tackling Difficult Cases at the Royal College of Physicians. The Fellowship will continue to host three joint meetings annually with the London Cardiovascular Society at the Medical Society of London. Further reading Cook GC. John MacAlister’s Other Vision: A History of the Fellowship of Postgraduate Medicine. Oxford: Radcliffe Publishing, 2005.