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Rheumatology

Rheumatologists are doctors who diagnose and manage chronic inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatic conditions can affect people at any age.

Those under 16 are generally treated in paediatric rheumatology services, before starting to transition to care within adult rheumatology settings.

Life as a rheumatologist

You’ll diagnose and manage musculoskeletal conditions including inflammatory and non-inflammatory disorders, which can affect people’s bones, joints, muscles and soft tissues. 

You’ll treat people with:

  • inflammatory joint disease, for example rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis
  • degenerative joint disease, for example osteoarthritis
  • autoimmune disease [1], for example lupus, scleroderma, myositis
  • metabolic [2] bone disorders, for example osteoporosis
  • crystal arthropathies, for example gout or pseudogout
  • musculoskeletal infections

Rheumatologists work to improve the lives of children and adults with rheumatic and musculoskeletal disease. You’ll spend quite a bit of time in outpatients speaking to and examining patients and undertaking investigations such as plain x-rays,  ultrasound [3] scans and MRI [4] scans.

You’ll see inpatient referrals from all over the hospital. 

Many rheumatologists do practical procedures such as joint injections and/ or muscle biopsies. 

How much can I earn?

You’ll first earn a salary when you start your foundation training [5] after medical school.  Find out details of current salary ranges for foundation and specialty training, SAS doctors [6] and consultants on the Pay for doctors [7] page. 

How about the benefits?  

  • make a difference 
  • flexible and part-time working 
  • high income early in your career   
  • work anywhere in the world   
  • excellent pension scheme 
  • good holiday entitlement 
  • NHS discounts in shops and restaurants

Must-have skills

  • excellent communication skills to manage a wide range of relationships with colleagues, and patients and their families
  • emotional resilience, a calm temperament and the ability to work well under pressure
  • teamwork and the capacity to lead multidisciplinary teams
  • problem-solving and diagnostic skills
  • outstanding organisational ability and effective decision-making skills
  • first-class time and resource management for the benefit of patients

Entry requirements

Your first step is medical school. Typically, you’ll need excellent GCSEs and three A or A* passes at A level including chemistry for a five-year undergraduate degree in medicine. Many medical schools also ask for biology and others may require maths or physics.

If you already have a degree, you could study for a four-year postgraduate degree in medicine.

You’ll need to pass an interview and admissions test. You’ll be asked to show how you demonstrate the NHS values such as compassion and respect.

Some medical schools look to recruit a mix of students from different backgrounds and geographical areas, so your educational and economic background and family circumstances could be considered as part of your application.

What are my chances of starting a career as a rheumatologist?

There are approximately 699 rheumatologists working in the NHS in England. In 2020, there were 199 applications for 33 specialty training places.

How to become a rheumatologist

After medical school, you’ll join the paid two-year foundation programme [8] where you’ll work in six placements in different settings.  

After your foundation programme, you can apply for paid specialty training [9] to become a rheumatologist, which will take a minimum of seven years.  

You may be able to train part time, for example for health reasons or if you have family or caring responsibilities.

Where a career as a rheumatologist can take you

You’ll have the opportunity to develop sub-specialty interests such as:
  • paediatric rheumatology
  • metabolic [2] bone disease
  • autoimmune multi-system connective tissue diseases

​You may also have opportunities to conduct research or take on education and leadership roles.

  • Find a vacancy

    • Consultant Rheumatologist

      Barrow in Furness, LA14 4LF

      Salary:
      £105504.00 to £139882.00
      Type:
      Permanent
      Employer:
      University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Trust
      Apply now on NHS Jobs for Consultant Rheumatologist job (opens in a new window) [10]
    • Locum Consultant Rheumatologist

      Torquay, TQ2 7AA

      Salary:
      £105504.00 to £139882.00
      Type:
      Fixed-Term
      Employer:
      Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust
      Apply now on NHS Jobs for Locum Consultant Rheumatologist job (opens in a new window) [11]
    • Rheumatology Consultant

      Rochdale, OL12 0NB

      Salary:
      £105504.00 to £139882.00
      Type:
      Permanent
      Employer:
      Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust
      Apply now on NHS Jobs for Rheumatology Consultant job (opens in a new window) [12]
    • Rheumatology Consultant

      Nuneaton, CV10 7DJ

      Salary:
      £105504.00 to £139882.00
      Type:
      Permanent
      Employer:
      George Eliot Hospital NHS Trust
      Apply now on NHS Jobs for Rheumatology Consultant job (opens in a new window) [13]
    • Consultant - Rheumatology

      Slough, SL2 4HL

      Salary:
      £105504.00 to £139882.00
      Type:
      Permanent
      Employer:
      Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust
      Apply now on NHS Jobs for Consultant - Rheumatology job (opens in a new window) [14]
    • Consultant - Rheumatology

      Chester, CH2 1UL

      Salary:
      £105504.00 to £139882.00
      Type:
      Permanent
      Employer:
      Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
      Apply now on NHS Jobs for Consultant - Rheumatology job (opens in a new window) [15]
    • Consultant Rheumatologist, University Hospital of North Durham

      Durham, DH1 5TW

      Salary:
      £105504.00 to £139882.00
      Type:
      Permanent
      Employer:
      County Durham & Darlington NHS Foundation Trust
      Apply now on NHS Jobs for Consultant Rheumatologist, University Hospital of North Durham job (opens in a new window) [16]
    • Rheumatology Database Administrator

      Gobowen, SY10 7AG

      Salary:
      £24625.00 to £25674.00
      Type:
      Fixed-Term
      Employer:
      Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
      Apply now on NHS Jobs for Rheumatology Database Administrator job (opens in a new window) [17]
    • Advanced Clinical Pharmacist-Rheumatology

      Weston-super-Mare, BS23 4TQ

      Salary:
      £53755.00 to £60504.00
      Type:
      Permanent
      Employer:
      University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW)
      Apply now on NHS Jobs for Advanced Clinical Pharmacist-Rheumatology job (opens in a new window) [18]
    • Advanced Specialist Pharmacist - Rheumatology

      Carlisle, CA2 7HY

      Salary:
      £53755.00 to £60504.00
      Type:
      Permanent
      Employer:
      North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust
      Apply now on NHS Jobs for Advanced Specialist Pharmacist - Rheumatology job (opens in a new window) [19]
    • Specialty Doctor in Rheumatology

      Port Talbot, SA12 7BX

      Salary:
      £59175.00 to £95400.00
      Type:
      Permanent
      Employer:
      Swansea Bay University Health Board
      Apply now on NHS Jobs for Specialty Doctor in Rheumatology job (opens in a new window) [20]
    • Rheumatology High Cost Drug Coordinator

      Manchester, M139WL

      Salary:
      £26530.00 to £29114.00
      Type:
      Permanent
      Employer:
      Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust
      Apply now on NHS Jobs for Rheumatology High Cost Drug Coordinator job (opens in a new window) [21]
    • Senior Clinical Fellow in Rheumatology

      Prescot, L35 5DR

      Salary:
      £61825.00
      Type:
      Fixed-Term
      Employer:
      Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
      Apply now on NHS Jobs for Senior Clinical Fellow in Rheumatology job (opens in a new window) [22]
    • Consultant in Rheumatology *Welcome Bonus 20K*

      Ipswich, IP4 5PD

      Salary:
      £105504.00 to £139882.00
      Type:
      Permanent
      Employer:
      East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust
      Apply now on NHS Jobs for Consultant in Rheumatology *Welcome Bonus 20K* job (opens in a new window) [23]
    • Advanced Pharmacist - Training & Development/ Rheumatology Services

      Wrexham, LL13 7TD

      Salary:
      £54550.00 to £61412.00
      Type:
      Permanent
      Employer:
      Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board
      Apply now on NHS Jobs for Advanced Pharmacist - Training & Development/ Rheumatology Services job (opens in a new window) [24]
    • Locum Consultant in Rheumatology - West Middlesex site

      Isleworth, TW7 6AF

      Salary:
      £105504.00 to £139882.00
      Type:
      Fixed-Term
      Employer:
      Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
      Apply now on NHS Jobs for Locum Consultant in Rheumatology - West Middlesex site job (opens in a new window) [25]
    • Advanced Clinical Pharmacist- Renal and Rheumatology (XR08)

      Leeds, LS1 3EX

      Salary:
      £53755.00 to £60504.00
      Type:
      Fixed-Term
      Employer:
      Leeds Teaching Hospitals
      Apply now on NHS Jobs for Advanced Clinical Pharmacist- Renal and Rheumatology (XR08) job (opens in a new window) [26]
    • Training Programme Director for Rheumatology in KSS

      Horley, RH6 7DE

      Salary:
      Negotiable
      Type:
      Secondment
      Employer:
      NHS England
      Apply now on NHS Jobs for Training Programme Director for Rheumatology in KSS job (opens in a new window) [27]
  • These organisations have further information about being a rheumatologist, particularly as your career progresses. Take a look.

    Royal College of Physicians [28]

    Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh [29]

    Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow [30]

    British Society for Rheumatology [31]

    Arthritis Research UK [32]

    And hear from people working in rheumatology: 

    Dr Alan J Hakim, consultant in rheumatology and acute medicine (RCP) [33]

    Dr Derek Baxter, consultant rheumatologist (RCPE) [34]

    Dr Muhammad Farooq Kazmi – ST6, consultant rheumatologist (RCPE) [35]

Other roles that may interest you

  • General internal medicine [36]
  • Immunology [37]
  • Rehabilitation medicine [38]
  • Sport and exercise medicine [39]

Source URL:https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/explore-roles/doctors/roles-doctors/medicine/rheumatology

Links
[1] https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/glossary#Autoimmune_disease [2] https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/glossary#Metabolic [3] https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/glossary#Ultrasound [4] https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/glossary#MRI [5] https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/glossary#Foundation_training [6] https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/explore-roles/doctors/career-opportunities-doctors/sas-doctors [7] https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/explore-roles/doctors/pay-doctors [8] https://foundationprogramme.nhs.uk/ [9] https://specialtytraining.hee.nhs.uk/ [10] https://beta.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate/jobadvert/C9331-25-0456 [11] https://beta.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate/jobadvert/C9388-25-0679 [12] https://beta.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate/jobadvert/C9236-25-1034 [13] https://beta.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate/jobadvert/C9230-25-0220 [14] https://beta.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate/jobadvert/C9151-25-0670 [15] https://beta.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate/jobadvert/C9210-25-0268 [16] https://beta.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate/jobadvert/C9439-2526-0174 [17] https://beta.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate/jobadvert/C9224-25-0139 [18] https://beta.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate/jobadvert/C9387-25-1017 [19] https://beta.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate/jobadvert/C9262-25-0743 [20] https://beta.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate/jobadvert/H9130-25-0490 [21] https://beta.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate/jobadvert/C9349-25-1741 [22] https://beta.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate/jobadvert/C9409-25-0510 [23] https://beta.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate/jobadvert/C9432-25-0582 [24] https://beta.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate/jobadvert/H9050-25-1683 [25] https://beta.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate/jobadvert/C9289-25-0121 [26] https://beta.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate/jobadvert/C9298-MMP-395 [27] https://beta.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate/jobadvert/M9990-25-0166 [28] http://www.rcplondon.ac.uk/ [29] http://www.rcpe.ac.uk/ [30] http://www.rcpsg.ac.uk [31] http://www.rheumatology.org.uk/ [32] http://www.arthritisresearchuk.org/ [33] https://www.rcplondon.ac.uk/education-practice/interview/specialty-career-profile-rheumatology-and-acute-medicine [34] http://www.rcpe.ac.uk/careers-resource/rheumatology [35] https://www.rcpe.ac.uk/careers-resource/rheumatology-2 [36] https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/explore-roles/doctors/roles-doctors/medicine/general-internal-medicine [37] https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/explore-roles/doctors/roles-doctors/medicine/immunology [38] https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/explore-roles/doctors/roles-doctors/medicine/rehabilitation-medicine [39] https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/explore-roles/doctors/roles-doctors/medicine/sport-and-exercise-medicine