Shaping the UK radiology workforce: Two decades of diversity, progression, and training evolution – A national observational study

The UK continues to face radiology workforce pressures. This study examined how major policy events have shaped diversity and career timelines within the senior UK radiology workforce over nearly two decades. All radiologists added to the General Medical Council (GMC) Specialist Register between 2006 and 2023 were identified via a Freedom of Information request. Gender and country of primary medical qualification (PMQ) were analysed, classifying radiologists as UK medical graduates (UKMGs) or international medical graduates (IMGs). The interval between PMQ and specialty registration was a surrogate proxy for overall progression. Temporal trends were assessed using Poisson, binomial logistic, and quantile regression, with interrupted time-series models assessing inflection points at 2012 (MMC), 2016 (Brexit), and 2020 (COVID-19). Between 2006 and 2023, 4409 radiologists entered the GMC Specialist Register; 39.2% were women and 39.8% were IMGs from 80 countries. Annual registrations rose by +3.85%/year (p < 0.001) without significant change in female (β:+0.0045, p = 0.44) or IMG (β: 0.0045, p = 0.44) representation. Median time from PMQ to registration was 10 years (IQR: 9–13), 1 year longer for females (p < 0.001) and 4 years longer for IMGs (p < 0.001). The gender gap remained stable (interaction β:+0.029/year, p = 0.51), while the UKMG–IMG gap widened (interaction β:+0.224/year, p < 0.001). The senior radiology workforce has expanded and remains internationally diverse, though gender representation has plateaued. Female radiologists and IMG radiologists had longer intervals to registration. Further work is needed to understand these differences, which may be due to differences in career breaks, migration and global changes in training pathways.