A recent study shows that it continues to take longer to fill a GP job than most other professions in Australia, confirming that the supply of GPs continues to be inadequate.
The study confirms our experience at Alecto Australia where we find that it commonly takes 3-12 months even the most popular GP roles. Positions in regional towns who cannot access exemptions through DWS provisions can take years to fill. Even less popular area of metropolitan locations experiences shortages.
A study conducted by Indeed in 2017/18 shows that GP roles are some of the most difficult roles to fill in Australia. Unfortunately, this study is no longer available at the original URL destination where it was published, but our internal recruitment agents confirm that the recruitment process can take 6-12 months due to the shortage and demand for GPs around Australia.
This research highlights a range of issues that we face in day to day life as GP recruiters:
- Locations that cannot engage Overseas Trained Doctors, struggle to find GPs over months and sometimes years.
- Some locations are using 19AB ‘workarounds’ to fill their short-term workforce needs but are not finding permanent solutions for their vacancies.
- Communities are being impacted because many Australians cannot access a regular GP resulting in fragmented Primary care services.
- A lack of GPs increases the likelihood that patients will be treated for symptoms only rather than taking into account their recent health history and managing the risks of chronic conditions
- Many conditions that could be managed effectively in a Primary Care setting, are likely to show up in an Emergency Department – costing tax payers more than 10 x more for every patient.
Alecto continues to use various innovative approaches to improving the GP workforce situation and looks forward to working with GP clinics around Australia to help wherever possible to make a difference to practices around Australia.