Ive spoken to a few Australian nurses on another forum.

They have said that Victoria and Queensland are very short for nurses. These states seem to be hit worse at the moment.

Also regarding WA their is still jobs but that you may need to shop around for hospitals. A little bit further out of the centre and rural the more jobs.
* Also regarding the Perth central hospitals they reckon that they will have shortages in the future due to average age of nurses being 50.

My town in WA had adverts in the Press for the private hospital and the state only a couple of weeks ago and Im in WA.

From what Ive been told is shop around WA, and also consider Victoria and Queensland.

Gems

Hi Maggy. I only just read your reply and was wondering how the jobs front is looking at the care home you work in. I have just checked out the website and have emailed them to ask for advice. We are heading for Joondalup and I see they have a care home there.

I believe the site in Kingsley that I work at are still looking for RN's and EN's not sure about Joondalup but they usually advertise on their website.

Kingsley is only 10 min drive from Joondalup and they also have a site in Edgewater which is a few minutes drive from Joondalup.

When are you arriving in Perth?

Mags

Hi thanks for replying. We fly out on June 30th 2010. Just applied to do the IELTS test and then I can apply for registration... if I pass it!! I'll check that home out on the wbsite.

No worries

You shouldnt have a problem getting work when you arrive.

I would even suggest you just go into Kingsley and Joondalup Brightwater sites and hand in your resume.

I know a few people who have done this and started work almost immediatly.

Good luck and let me know if there is anything I can do to help.

Mags

I'm an ex-nurse and my mother-in-law is in an aged care home, currently her 4th (hopefully no more moves). Her homes always seem to use agency staff as well as permanent ones and there are several other major care groups. Also try:
Aegis http://www.aegiscare.com.au/pages/joinourteam.asp
Bethanie http://www.bethanie.com.au/index.php...the-workforce1
Mercy http://www.mercycare.com.au/working-with-us/

If you're able to, a course on dementia nursing would also be helpful. There is a federal govt program to help older people stay at home for as long as possible, and these programs need coordinators and clinical nurses. There are also other options, eg there is a specialist behaviour program at Alzheimer's Australia in Perth, or there's also the option of becoming a nurse working on a research project, or becoming a nurse tutor. The unis to look into:
University of Western Australia (doesn't have nurse training, but large health research program)
Edith Cowan University
Murdoch University
Curtin University
University of Notre Dame

The WA govt website to look for nursing jobs is:
http://www.jobs.health.wa.gov.au/page.php?pageID=215

They currently are advertising 44 nursing jobs, including one for a community mental health nurse at Joondalup.

One thing about Perth (and other Australian cities) - you might end up doing something completely different, and there are plenty of opportunities here.

Good luck

I forgot a couple more:
Amana Living http://www.amanaliving.com.au/WORKIN...s/default.aspx
Fresh Fields (aka Hall & Prior) http://www.hallprior-agedcare.com.au/employment.htm

Lots of jobs listed on seek.com.au. If you do work through an agency, the big advantage is that you get to try out a hospital or care facility before committing yourself long-term, plus you might get to hear about jobs before they're advertisied (and some jobs don't get advertised at all).

I have to agree Agency work is a fab way to try out different hospitals and care facilities.

Mags

Thankyou so much for the info it's much appreciated.