For the second year in a row, Central Coast Local Health District (CCLHD) has welcomed 68 interns to bolster the region’s health services.
District Director Medical Services Professor Steevie Chan said many of the interns have already worked either as Assistants in Medicine or student vaccinators as part of the COVID-19 workforce response across NSW.
“They will continue to play a vital role in our District’s hospitals as we navigate the challenges of this unprecedented, world-wide pandemic,” Chan said.
The new doctors starting their internship will be entering a training program which will provide formal and on the job training.
They receive two-year contracts to rotate between metropolitan, regional and rural hospitals to ensure the diversity of their experience.
They also work in different units in each hospital, including the medicine, surgery and emergency departments.
Interns are medical graduates who have completed their medical degree and are required to complete a supervised year of practice in order to become independent practitioners.
This year 1,073 new medical interns are joining the NSW Health system, a record number of new starters and the most of any state or territory in Australia.
Parliamentary Secretary for the Central Coast and Member for Terrigal, Adam Crouch, welcomed the new medical staffers.
“Our community owes a huge debt of gratitude to our local health teams who have worked around the clock to keep us safe, especially over the past two years,” Crouch said.
“The 68 new interns will boost our local health workforce at a pivotal time as we continue our response to COVID-19.
“I am incredibly pleased that these new interns have the opportunity to learn from the world-class doctors at both Gosford and Wyong Hospitals and play a significant role in navigating the challenges of this unprecedented, world-wide pandemic.”
In the largest ever health workforce boost in the state, the NSW Government has invested a record $2.8 billion to recruit an additional 1,060 doctors, 5,000 nurses, 880 allied health staff and 1,360 hospital support staff over a four year period.
Terry Collins