AUSTRALIA: From April 2025, Australia will fast-track the registration process of nurses from six countries, including Singapore, to address its ongoing nursing shortage. Announced by the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) on Jan 26, the scheme will allow registered nurses with over 1,800 hours of practice since 2017 to secure faster registration, potentially bypassing exams and assessments.
According to The Straits Times (ST), nurses from Singapore, the UK, Ireland, the US, Spain, and the Canadian provinces of British Columbia and Ontario will see processing times reduced to one to six months, down from the current nine to 12 months.
Addressing an urgent need
The initiative has been widely welcomed, as Australia faces a projected shortage of 71,000 nurses by 2035. The country has struggled to train and retain enough domestic nurses despite growing healthcare demands.
The New South Wales Nurses and Midwives Association positively viewed this decision. “We would be very grateful that these nurses want to work with us,” said its head, Ms O’Bray Smith, in comments to ST.
The Australian Primary Health Care Nurses Association echoed the sentiment, with its chief executive, Mr Ken Griffin, telling ST that overseas-trained nurses are crucial in addressing urgent workforce gaps.
Growing reliance on foreign nurses
Australia has increasingly turned to overseas nurses. As of mid-2024, foreign nurses comprised 43% of newly registered nurses, with 16,622 of 38,816 registrations from abroad. The country had 504,049 nurses as of June 2024.
Health Minister Mark Butler stressed that cutting bureaucratic delays would help nurses start working sooner. “Australian patients will ultimately benefit from these changes since these highly educated nurses can start working and providing care to Australians sooner, without waiting needlessly on red tape,” he said.
The challenge of retention
While recruitment efforts continue, experts warn that retaining local and foreign nurses remains critical. A Queensland scheme offering up to A$20,000 (S$16,700) to healthcare workers in regional areas ended on Feb 1, highlighting the short-term nature of such initiatives.
Dr Nicole Blay of Western Sydney University told ST that while fast-tracking foreign nurses was a positive step, reducing workloads and improving conditions are essential to keeping them in the workforce. She noted that Australia had recruited large numbers of foreign nurses in the 1980s, but many later returned home.
A temporary fix
While foreign nurses can apply for permanent residency and citizenship, some experts argue that Australia must address deeper issues driving nurses from the profession.
Ms Kara Thomas, president of the Nurses’ Professional Association of Australia, told ST the policy was a “band-aid solution.” “While international nurses are welcome, this move ignores the fundamental crisis and challenges, with the main issues being dangerous under-staffing, workplace safety issues, inadequate pay and bureaucratic inefficiencies,” she said.
Ms Smith from the NSW Nurses and Midwives Association agreed with this, stressing the need for better pay and working conditions. “Nurses train for at least three years and have people’s lives in their hands,” she said. “Their pay needs to reflect that skill.”
A global issue
Australia’s nursing shortages reflect a broader global issue. Many countries face similar challenges, competing for a limited pool of healthcare workers while struggling to retain staff due to increasing workloads and stagnant wages.
While Australia’s plan may provide short-term relief, the sustainability of its healthcare system depends on addressing systemic issues. These include ensuring fair pay, reducing workloads, and improving conditions for both domestic and international nurses.