Recruitment blitz of overseas healthcare workers

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The state government is working to relieve pressure on the hospital system through a healthcare recruitment blitz of workers living overseas.

Almost 700 overseas healthcare workers have arrived in Victoria in the last year, hailing from Ireland, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore, India, New Zealand, the Philippines and the United States to take up employment across Victoria’s public health services.

The international recruitment of workers will aim to help Victoria’s health system, as it continues to experience record-breaking demand for services while managing the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Healthcare workers moving to Victoria from overseas are incentivised by the government’s travel allowance scheme, which provides help with relocation costs of up to $10,000 if moving to a metro area, or $13,000 for regional areas.

Victorian premier Daniel Andrews said as the demand for healthcare continued to rise, the biggest support the state could give healthcare workers was an extra set of hands.

“Our health system continues to see record demand and our recruitment blitz is making a big difference on the ground, helping provide the timely, world-class care that every Victorian deserves.”