island01

Hi. Firstly apologies for the repetitive nature of my query. It seems there are plenty of posts on here surrounding the same subject but most appear slightly dated now so I'm hoping for some more current info/opinions if possible? I'm a uk paramedic of 6 years from the Isle of Wight and hold the foundation degree in paramedic science. My wife and I are very interested in a move to Queensland for the pursuit of a better quality of life. She is a midwife and we have 3 children 12, 4 & 2. Is there any uk paramedic's that have made the leap across? Did you take a uk carer break and a Queensland induction/trail first or just simply fully commit to moving and working? How does the uk paramedic skill set compare and is is welcomed? And lastly any advice or regrets? Any help would be massively appreciated. Many thanks, Jason.

verystormy

What make you think this? After 13 countries and 8 years in Australia, I would say one first world country offers no better a quality of life than any other.

island01

Thank you for your opinion. It sounds like you've done a lot of travelling! I was loosely summarising. Are you are paramedic? If so, could you please elaborate on my queries surrounding working as a uk paramedic in Queensland please?

Pollyana

First thing to note is that no way will QAS sponsor a paramedic at present so you would need to check the SOL and see if you can get an independent skills visa - I don't know if paramedics are currently on the list. QAS used to sponsor a lot but the financial climate here has pretty much put paid to that in the last few years.
Also there are plenty of people already here chasing the jobs. I do sometimes wonder why as the way many paramedics get treated by the public here is disgusting. Nearly every day we hear from the guys at work about another attack either physical or verbal on crews just doing their job. Wages are pretty poor too, with long hours, lack of meal breaks etc. Not really a good quality of life and I am glad I am in a different area of emergency work.

Many of the paramedics who came out 10 years or so ago have packed up and gone home, we had a fair few on the site at one time, and even the QAS recruiters used to frequent BE - I used to walk past desks and see the forum open on senior officer's computers One Brit who comes to mind was called MissBetty, she wrote quite a lot of very accurate stuff about working in Far North Queensland. One thing to be aware of, if you do get here and get into QAS, you would probably end up working rural, outside of the Brisbane/Gold Coast metro area, for some time at first, the jobs in the metro are well sought after.

island01

Thanks for taking the time to go into some detail. Especially what you have said about current recruitment and what challenges I may face. I guess the less appealing and negative side to the job will inevitably rear its head no mater where in the world you are. I could easily drone on about a multitude of similar issues here but I always promised myself that I would never turn into that miserable paramedic who loves to complain. (We all know the sort) .😜 The job certainly isn't broken for me here and I'm under no illusion that moving would massively improve the negative stuff. I more interested in how my current skill set would transfer across to that of a Queensland paramedic and how sought after HCPC UK paramedics are?

Giving the gravity of what I am thinking, I get the impression that I would most defiantly benefit from an opportunity to experience work/life on a temporary working visa/basis before ever fully committing and moving.

ozzieeagle

You may find this article very interesting !

British snatch Australian ambulance paramedics

The gist of that article suggests you should be able to find a Aussie Paramedic locally to ask in person..... have you seen any of them ?

evets

Awesome quote, and me with only 4 countries under my belt.

Australia has its own pros and cons, you need to work out if the life and lifestyle you have at the moment is actually going to be any better down under.

Have you actually spent any time in QLD.

What is the appeal, especially if you have not lived here. A 2 week vacation does not count.

carcajou

Pollyanna, here in regional WA the paramedics have the same challenges. Getting called out on prank calls, getting verbally abused, etc. It is also similar here in that someone wanting a job in Perth, first has to work regional, and then "work their way back" to the city.

Incoming paramedics should be forewarned about the meth/ice epidemic in regional Australia, and the impact that is having.

island01

Thank you for forwarding me that. I've not met any Aussie paramedic's but I'm getting the theme of the article.

ozzieeagle

There was quite a hullabaloo about it in Melbourne about 2 years back, they did interviews with paramedics that had moved over. It would be interesting to find out whether they or how many stayed on. Here's a couple of videos from back then.



From memory I think about 400 to 500 Australian Paramedics moved over... at least 100 of those from Melbourne. I think the reason Aus Paramedics were sought after was they were trained and used to work Solo or Autonomously.



We've got two that come along in our group to Melbourne Victory games.... So will try and remember to ask them about the UK lot when I see them.

sr71

A good friend of mine was a paramedic in Victoria, he has quit and nearly had a breakdown because of it. Was on antidepressants for a while. From what I've read in the press as well it's not a happy place to be, bullying culture, abuse from the public, poor support from the government and working conditions not that great. If you are thinking of coming over make sure you research as much as you can with people who are current paramedics. Maybe some other forums could be of assistance

garyp

Sent you a PM

ScousieG

Hi Jason,

I'm due to move out myself in October with my wife joining the Ozzy army, i have been looking on QAS website for the past 12 to 18 months for jobs. theres has been no vacancies i have seen in that time, there is work but you will have to travel such as mine work, oil and off shore. international SOS (https://www.internationalsos.com/careers) seen to be always recruiting.

we are moving to Brisbane North Lakes area, I'm using VETASSES to transfer my Qual and i also have the same Qual as you. current i am planning for the worst i.e no employment as a para so ill be hopefully either fixing bikes or driving, saving money to advance my quals in order to look more employable.

I'm happy for a phone call chat if you need anymore advice for what I'm going through.

all the best

Craig

garyp

Had a work colleague recently move to the Sunshine Coast as his wife is a nurse.He got a job as a rescue Paramedic with a private company think it is fly in fly out involved at times. He went over for a reccie and managed to get some courses under his belt with the company while there and they offered him a job.

ScousieG

Nice One Gary,

sounds like a plan i left the military December, i was a winch medic for a year in Belize would mind carrying that on as I'm currently working for East of England ambulance service living in my camper saving money for courses...

can you remember what company pal?