Medical intern recruitment program
Brief ministerial statement
Ms Meredith Hammat (Girrawheen—Minister for Health) (1:28 pm): I rise today to speak on the opening of medical intern positions. I am pleased to announce that applications are now open for the 2026 Intern Recruitment program. This recruitment program offers a vital first step for medical graduates ready to kickstart their careers in the Western Australian public health system. These positions provide newly qualified medical professionals with essential clinical experience. The Cook Labor government has increased the number of positions by 14 places. The increase in the number of positions will provide increased opportunities for those in regional and rural areas and provide greater certainty for the large number of medical graduates who are expected to graduate this year. There are 430 intern positions available across six hospitals, including Fiona Stanley, Joondalup, Royal Perth, Sir Charles Gairdner and Midland, and across the WA Country Health Service.
Those in positions within WA Health and at Joondalup can be offered three-year contracts, and those at St John of God Midland offered two-year contracts. Interns will be surrounded by incredible, supportive medical professionals along their journey, from knowledgeable pharmacists to colleagues who may surprise them with a coffee during chaotic shifts. These positions will also offer interns the chance to explore our regions, with metropolitan-based interns able to undertake rotations at other rural and remote sites, allowing them to be involved in a wide range of experiences and procedures.
This builds on our government's fee-free TAFE initiatives, under which enrolments for fee-free TAFE courses are going from strength to strength. To be considered for one of the 430 positions, applicants must be a graduate from an Australian Medical Council–accredited medical school or a graduate from a university in a competent authority country. The program has a high number of applications each year, so I encourage graduates from WA's medical schools, those in other Australian jurisdictions or New Zealand, and international medical schools accredited by the Australian Medical Council to apply now and get in early. Applications are now open and will close on Thursday 4 June at 12 noon. This is all part of the Cook Labor government's plan to make WA the healthiest state in the nation.
