UK and Irish GPs in Australia
Why have so many British and Irish doctors moved to Australia?
A friendly place to live and work
Salaries of GPs, tax and the cost of living Down Under
College membership and professional registration
There are lots of reasons for British and Irish GPs to move to Australia. Some of the many attractions are that Australia is a sun-blessed country with plenty of space, offering beautiful beaches, attractive lifestyle and low cost of living, as well as a resilient, growing and modern economy despite the global financial slowdown.
With the changes in the structure and funding of the NHS and the current economical climate, Australia offers an attractive alternative for UK and Irish doctors. In Australia you can find a comparable standard of healthcare system with job security, high living standard and a more relaxed lifestyle. Due to the similarities in language and training standards, Australia is particularly keen on Irish and British doctors.
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners recognises UK and Irish trained GPs as being fully comparable to the Australian-trained equivalent. Click here to find out more about college membership.
Why have so many British and Irish doctors moved to Australia?
There has been a big interest among UK trained doctors in working Down Under. A census of the medical workforce in Australia found over 4000 British-trained doctors working in Australia. That was over 8% of Australia’s entire medical workforce! In addition, Irish doctors also make up a sizeable proportion of the medical workforce.
Australia - A friendly place to live and work
The main reasons that tend to come up in conversations about why people choose Australia are lifestyle and work related factors:
• Lifestyle - better climate accompanied with the famous Aussie 'easy way-of-life', stunning scenery, glorious beaches, exciting cosmopolitan cities, affordable living, abundance of recreational opportunities such as surfing, sailing, diving water-skiing, skiing, etc
• Work - good pay, less hours, better conditions, increased career opportunities
Salaries of GPs, tax and the cost of living Down Under
General Practice in Australia pays well and just keeps getting better! In 2007 it was noted that GP income overall had risen about 20% compared to three years earlier *(Australian Doctor 27-Jun-2007) http://www.australiandoctor.com.au/news/3a/0c04d33a.asp
The annual income that a GP can expect to earn ranges between AUD $150,000 -$300,000 per annum. This can increase depending on the number of extra hours or after hours work performed. Other factors that can have an impact on your wage are: area of practice, type of work undertaken, private vs. bulk billing, hospital work and whether you are a practice owner, employee or contractor.
General practitioners bill per consultation on a “fee for service” basis. Lnk tii more info In Australia, GP salaries range between 50-75% of individual billings and are usually paid to you as an independent contractor. There are some arrangements where you are retained as an employee of the clinic on a fixed salary.
Although the rate of income tax in Australia is slightly higher in the top tax bracket this is more than compensated for by the affordability of basic necessities such as fuel or car prices. The cost of living in Australia is substantially cheaper than that of the UK or Ireland and generally all major household expenses are less expensive, from house prices to the weekly shopping. Australian cities are still among the cheapest in which to live, yet with the highest quality of living*.
(* Source: Mercer Human Resource Consulting – Cost of Living Survey, 2001-2006 (March survey comparisons) Mercer Human Resource Consulting – Cost of Living Survey annually ranks 144 cities using their cost of living index. The index is calculated by comparing the cost of more than 200 items including housing, food, clothing, transport and entertainment).
College membership and professional registration
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners recognise UK and Irish trained GPs as being fully comparable to the Australian-trained equivalent, provided you area:
- UK Member of the Royal College of General Practitioners (MRCGP) holding the Joint Committee on Postgraduate Training for General Practice (JCPTGP) certificate or MRCGP member holding Postgraduate Medical Education and Training Board (PMETB) qualification or
- Graduate of the Irish College of General Practitioners (ICGP) holding Membership of the Irish College of General Practitioners (MICGP)
To get started with your professional medical registration, the Australian Medical Council (AMC) website is the first place to visit. The AMC processes applications from all international medical graduates; but does not grant medical registration. In Australia, each state/territory has its own medical board and currently all medical practitioners are required to register in the state /territory in which they will be working. However, changes to nationalise the accreditation and registration process are currently underway.
As a British or Irish graduate, there are several options for medical registration - the recommended approach is the Specialist Pathway which allows you to work unsupervised as a general practitioner in many areas of Australia.
In terms of practice location, there are some restrictions whereby overseas trained doctors (OTDs) have to work in either an Area of Need (AON) and/or District of Workforce Shortage (DWS). However you will still be eligible to work in many fantastic Coastal, outer metropolitan and rural areas of Australia.
You will need to provide the AMC with:
• evidence of English language proficiency -you will need to demonstrate English competency by completing the IELTS examination -with a minimum score of 7 in each element), or the alternative Occupational English Test. Exemptions may apply when the applicant can provide evidence of secondary education in either UK, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, USA or South Africa, where English is the native or first language. Further information about the IELTS can be found on the IELTS website
• evidence of current medical registration in your jurisdiction
• verification of medical qualifications
Tell us your dream
As we said earlier, our service is absolutely free to doctors. We will start with an initial consultation to discuss your individual requirements and also give you a briefing on the process ahead of you, particularly:
- Location preferences (what type of lifestyle are you after)
- Length of stay - Ideal position
- Remuneration requirements
-Your family situation
We advertise general practitioner vacancies on our website, but encourage you to contact us as we do not advertise all positions.
Read an listen to testimonies from UK doctors who work in Australia
For some British and Irish GPs, moving to Australia has been the best decision of their lives.
"You use a wider range of your skills than in an office-based practice in the UK," according to Dr Margaret Smith, having left Scotland to take up a position in a small country town, some three hour drive from Sydney.
"Australia offers a fresh start in more ways than one way. You have a much sunnier outdoor lifestyle here and a more relaxed pace of life, with more time to spend with friends and family”.
http://www.doctorconnect.gov.au/internet/otd/publishing.nsf/Content/work-australian-of-the-year http://www.doctorconnect.gov.au/internet/otd/publishing.nsf/Content/work-australian-of-the-year-2006
You can also hear directly from GPs who have made the shift to rural and remote practice in these short documentaries (approx 5 mins). Go to www.gplifestylechange.com.au.
Aster Medical, providing a holistic, ethical recruitment service
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