European Training Requirements in Angiology & Vascular Medicine

What ETRs are, and why they exist.

The European Training Requirements (ETR) define the minimum level of training a doctor must have completed in order to practise vascular medicine independently, without supervision, and to a comparable standard throughout Europe. They were introduced because, in the absence of a common framework, the quality and scope of training can vary considerably from one healthcare system to another, whereas patients, wherever they are, deserve to receive the same standard of vascular care. The ETRs complement, rather than replace, the national authorities responsible for training.

The objective is not to replace national training systems. Instead, the ETR provides a European reference standard that can support the development and harmonisation of specialist training across different national systems.