Supporting International Medical Graduates to live and work in rural and remote Australia

International Medical Graduates are a key component of the rural and remote health workforce across Australia. Providing enhanced support to International Medical Graduates acknowledges their important contribution to the health of rural and remote Australians, now and into the future.

Key points

• Rural and remote Australian communities rely on International Medical Graduates (those who obtained their main medical qualifications overseas).

• IMGs are required to work in “Areas of Need”. These areas comprise some of the most remote parts of the country and also those areas where the Indigenous population is highest.

• IMGs make up almost 43 per cent of the GP workforce in rural and remote Australia.

• Medicare has become increasingly complex over time. IMGs require considerable assistance withcoming to terms with this system.

• IMGs also have to adjust to diff erent names for medications – even IMGs from English speaking countries take time to adjust to these clinical differences.

• IMGs are increasingly drawn from countries where English is not the first language; these IMGs therefore face both language and cultural diff erences.

• IMGs who stay in Australia long term are also more likely to come from countries where English is not their first language. IMGs from the UK, Ireland or the USA are likely to work in Australia for only short periods of time.

• We need to support IMG General Practitioners to sustain our rural and remote medical workforce.

Strategies

• We will undertake research so we can better understand the education and other support needsof IMG General Practitioners.

• We will work to develop, implement and evaluate programs that support them to live and work inrural and remote Australia.