Clair3347

Thank you to everyone for your information and suggestions. I have still been hunting day in and day out and nothing yet. I just keep getting told its a quiet period for nursing in any state at the moment but this year it seems to be much more quieter than normal. I am seriously looking at flights to go back to the UK on Wednesday. I might as well sit on my laptop searching jobs in Australia from the UK. I can at least go out and do some bank nursing and get some money coming in. Its not only the money but I am very passionate about my work and I am actually missing the interactions I have with my patients and other nurses. I am also being told that the nursing shortage still exists but the government have cut funding so therefore nurses cannot be hired even when they are required (sounds like the UK). However I am more frustrated that the Australian government are still taking applications and large amounts of money from nurses to have their visa and registration authorised. I have paid for everything myself and the visa, medicals, police checks and AHPRA registration fees soon adds up to nearly a couple of thousand pounds. Also if I do end up going back to the UK permanently to live then what a waste of my time and money. The AHPRA process in total took just over a year and I feel that this is messing with peoples lives by giving false hope of this so called nurse shortage economy. I have decided that my plan for now is to yo-yo between the UK and Australia. I will return to the UK, do 6-8 weeks solid work and come back with some cash behind me, at least I can then move to another state and search that inside out for jobs. If that fails then at least I get to travel a little and experience different parts of this lovely country and I will feel I got a little something out of my visa such as sightseeing! I wont give up :-)

I have registered my interest for the Fiona Stanley hospital but it does not open till April 2014. Thanks for the suggestion though

Hello there. I'm afraid I'm in the same position! I'm an Emergency Nurse and have a great deal of experience, however like my thread states I just can not find work at all. I have been in Perth for 3 months now and I've still not done a days work! Where have you tried looking? I've been through agencies and direct to hospitals but not a sausage! Might have to return to the Uk at this rate! Shame as it took me over a year to get registered with APHRA so such a long process and so much money for nothing! :mad:

Are Australia really short of nurses? I have been living in Fremantle in WA for 3 months now and still not working! I have been qualified for 5 years, I have 3.5 years of A&E experience in a busy British hospital, I have also done a year of surgical nursing and 6 months of elderly care. I have a First Class Honours degree in Adult Clinical Nursing. Surely my skills should be snapped up if Australia is so short of nurses? I have applied to agencies and hospitals direct but nothing. I am now beginning to run out of funds and thinking of returning to the UK to do a few months stink of bank nursing in the hospital Ive come from. When looking at jobs from the UK there seems to be lots of nursing positions available however i have noticed that for each hospital job going there are about 20 agencies that will also advertise that job and therefore i am getting nowhere. Has anyone else had similar problems or have any hints and tips for me before i give up and head back to the work in the UK which i don't really want to do! :nah: