Workforce sustainability

Education and training are an important medium-term strategy to help tackle labour market shortages. It was highlighted earlier that there are marked labour shortages in all sectors of the profession, particularly early career, rural and regional veterinarians. Without veterinarians in rural and regional areas risks emerge in Australia’s food production and add to bio-security risks.

Veterinary education is expensive to deliver and student experiences particularly in the rural and regional sectors come at an increasing cost to both veterinary students and the veterinary profession. This results in fewer graduates in rural and regional areas. Given the importance of the veterinary profession to society and the role the profession plays in biosecurity, food security, human health and well-being, it is critical that veterinary positions in rural and regional Australia can be filled.  A rural bonding scheme, similar to that offered to medical graduates, would be a strong incentive for early career vets to fill non-metropolitan positions.

Further analysis into the education and training of veterinary professionals to address labour market shortages – specifically in regional and rural areas and amongst early career vets is required. In the interim funding to assist students to increase their exposure to areas of the profession that are suffering the greatest labour shortages, e.g farm animal veterinarians, public health, pathology is likely to result in positive outcomes.

Recommendation 3.1 Creation of a HECS bonding scheme for regional and rural vets

Recommendation 3.2 Funding for further analysis of education and training needs of the profession to address labour market shortages in rural and regional areas and to increase students’ exposure to rural and regional Australia.