Hospital workforce
Who works in our hospitals?
The hospital workforce in Australia is large and diverse, covering many occupations including medical officers, nurses, diagnostic and allied health professionals (such as physiotherapists and occupational therapists), administrative and clerical staff, and domestic and other personal care staff.
Public hospitals
In 2020–21, there were 422,000 full-time equivalent (FTE) staff employed in public hospitals. The number of FTE staff has increased 3.4% per year on average since 2016–17.
| Type of staff | Average number of full-time equivalent staff | Average salary (per year) |
|---|---|---|
| Nurses | 174,574 (41%) | $111,102 |
| Administrative and clerical staff | 78,015 (18%) | $84,800 |
| Diagnostic and allied health professionals | 68,081 (16%) | $99,827 |
| Salaried medical officers | 52,209 (12%) | $232,501 |
| Domestic and other personal care staff | 48,851 (12%) | $67,675 |
The workforce described here includes people employed to manage and deliver public hospital services in public hospitals themselves, as well as within local hospital networks (LHNs) and state/territory health authorities. These staff numbers do not include visiting medical officers in public hospitals who are generally employed by the hospital on a contractual, rather than salaried basis.