First aid: examining health workforce migration

Strengthening health workforce migration to Australia and Canada

With Australia one of few places across the world that actively recruits doctors, nurses and dentist from other countries, a multidisciplinary research team is investigating the benefits and drawbacks of  skilled migration policies for medical professionals.

The Melbourne Institute's Professor Anthony Scott joins the Melbourne School of Population and Global Health's Professor Lesleyanne Hawthorne, and a team of researchers from universities across Australia and Canada, for the project, which aims to assess if the goal of domestic self-sufficiency is likely to be met by 2025.

Researchers will also examine the risk of a ‘two tier’ health workforce developing, resulting in conditionally registered migrants servicing patients in undersupplied sectors and sites, as well as propose changes to make Australia's migration and health policy systems more effective and ethical in future compared to Canada, a key global competitor for skilled migrants.

Impact

This project aims provide evidence to influence policy reforms to Australia's migration and health policy systems for skilled migrants working in medical professions.

Investigators

Professor Anthony Scott, Melbourne Institute, University of Melbourne

Professor Charles Sampford, Griffith University

Professor Stephanie Short, University of Sydney

Dr Hugh Breakey, Griffith University

Professor James Ted McDonald, University of New Brunswick, Canada

Professor Lennox Sweetman, McMaster University, Canada