Labour Market Research – Health Professionals
Tasmania
March 2015
Occupations in cluster
Rating
2346-11
Medical Laboratory Scientist
No shortage*
2512-11
Medical Diagnostic Radiographer
Shortage
2512-12
Medical Radiation Therapist
No shortage*
2512-14
Sonographer
Shortage
2514-11
Optometrist
Shortage
2515-11-13
Hospital/Retail Pharmacist
Recruitment difficulty
2523-12
Dentist
No shortage*
2524-11
Occupational Therapist
Shortage
2525-11
Physiotherapist
Shortage
2526-11
Podiatrist
No shortage*
2527-11
Audiologist
Shortage*
2527-12
Speech Pathologist
No shortage*
* Occupations assessed at the national level, separate rating not available for Tasmania.
Key issues

Recent research indicates there is a shortage of health professionals in Tasmania with the exception
of hospital/retail pharmacists. Employers are experiencing difficulty when recruiting for retail
pharmacists with all vacancies for hospital pharmacists filled.
Survey results



ISSN: 2205-3158

A total of 52 per cent of all health professional vacancies researched in the lead-up to this report
were filled.
Employers reported that they received an average of 4.4 applicants per vacancy, with an average of
1.7 applicants per vacancy considered suitable.
The shortage experienced by employers is largely considered to be due to qualified health
professionals being unwilling to relocate to Tasmania as there is no formal training available in
Tasmania for most of the health professional occupations.
Employers are experiencing difficulties recruiting for qualified retail pharmacists with no shortage of
hospital pharmacists in Tasmania. Employers indicated that either there were not enough qualified
retail pharmacists in the state to fill vacancies or they were unable to offer the more attractive
working conditions and higher salaries offered by larger pharmacy chains. In comparison, all
employers of hospital pharmacists were able to fill their vacancies without difficulty.
Labour Economics Office Tasmania
Department of Employment
Page 1
Applicants per vacancy - RHS
100
90
80
70
60
(%) 50
40
30
20
10
0
Suitable applicants per vacancy - RHS
67%
67%
63%
Proportion of vacancies filled - LHS
5.6
25%
29%
3.3
0.9
0.3
25%
0%
1.3
0.3 0.3
2.2
0.8
0.3
1.0
0.9
1.8
1.0
10
9
8
7
6
5(no.)
4
3
2
1
0
Figure 1: Proportion of vacancies filled (%), average number of applicants and suitable applicants
per vacancy (no.), Health Professionals, Tasmania, 2014-15
Source: Department of Employment, Survey of Employers who have Recently Advertised
Reasons applicants were unsuitable

The main reasons employers considered applicants unsuitable were due to their lack of relevant
qualifications, management experience, specialist technical skills and experience, failure to
adequately address the selection criteria, poor communication skills or they were not the right fit
for their business.
Demand and supply trends




At the 2011 ABS Census all health professionals, with the exception of retail pharmacists, worked in
the health care and social assistance industry. The majority of retail pharmacists worked in the retail
trade industry.1
Over the five years to February 2015, employment in Tasmania in the health care and social
assistance industry increased by 3.3 per cent. In addition, employment in the retail trade industry
increased by 10.4 per cent over the same period.2
According to 2011 ABS Census the vast majority of occupational therapists and physiotherapists in
Tasmania were female.1 This high percentage of women indicates that additional demand may be
created if they exit the workforce for maternity based absences or family commitments.
With the exception of medical diagnostic radiographers and hospital/retail pharmacists, there is no
formal training available in Tasmania for the health professional occupations researched in the leadup to this report.
1 ABS 2011 Census Population data, Tasmania
2 ABS, Labour Force, February 2015, Department of Employment trend data.
Labour Economics Office Tasmania
Department of Employment
Page 2


For students wishing to undertake training in medical diagnostic radiography, the University of
Tasmania (UTAS) has an arrangement with Charles Sturt University in NSW, enabling Tasmanians to
undertake two years of a health science degree at the Launceston Campus of UTAS followed by two
years specialising in either medical imaging or nuclear medicine. There is also a final fifth year of a
clinical placement at a radiology facility and studying some additional course work by distance
education. The first graduates from UTAS under this arrangement graduated in 2008, when three
people graduated with a Bachelor of Health Science/Medical Radiation Science. Numbers of
graduates have been in single figures since, with the largest number to date at eight, in 2011. A
further six graduated in 2012, and another five in 2013.3
The number of domestic pharmacy graduates from UTAS has increased steadily over the last five
years, from 28 in 2009, to 44 in 2013.3
Other indicators and issues



With limited formal training available in Tasmania for a majority of the health professional
occupations, once graduates have qualified interstate it is difficult to recruit these graduates to
move to Tasmania.
It was noted by some employers that changes to the course structure for medical diagnostic
radiographers has increased the length of the degree, adding to the shortage of qualified
radiographers.
It was mentioned by some employers that there may be issues with trainee sonographers
completing their training due to a shortage of qualified sonographers available to supervise them.
3 University of Tasmania, UTAS Completions 2013
Labour Economics Office Tasmania
Department of Employment
Page 3