Nurse fast-track sees success
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Australia is cutting red tape to bring in more nurses from overseas.
The Australian healthcare system saw a substantial increase in internationally qualified nurses joining its workforce in the 2022/23 financial year.
Over 16,500 nurses from overseas registered to practise in Australia in the 12 month period, a figure three times higher than the 5,610 registrations recorded before the COVID-19 pandemic in 2018-19.
Of the 27,810 overseas nurses registered over the past two years, 70 per cent arrived via New Zealand under the Trans-Tasman Mutual Recognition Agreement.
Sixteen per cent, or 4,476 nurses, were from other countries, primarily Canada, Ireland, Singapore, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
To further address workforce shortages, the Albanese Government is implementing reforms to streamline the registration process for nurses from these comparable countries.
From March 2025, the assessment and registration timeline will be reduced by six to twelve months.
Nurses with at least 1,800 hours of practice since 2017 will no longer need to sit additional exams or upgrade qualifications to work in Australia.
Minister for Health and Aged Care Mark Butler said fast-tracking registration would ensure patients receive care sooner.
These measures align with recommendations from the Kruk Review, which identified the need for simpler and faster registration processes for overseas health professionals.
Additionally, the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia and the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) has begun a fast-track process for general practitioners from New Zealand, the UK, and Ireland. AHPRA is currently receiving an average of 11 applications per week under this scheme.
