Anaesthetist recruitment for regional employers

Anaesthetists assess patients before surgery and obtain consent, give general, regional and local anaesthesia and sedation, monitor patients through procedures and recovery, and work with other specialists on chronic pain, intensive care and resuscitation.² In a regional hospital the same specialist often covers elective lists, emergency theatre and obstetric epidurals.

Fellowship of the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists (FANZCA) leads to specialist registration in anaesthesia. Doctors need two years of general hospital experience after medical school before applying,⁸ and the training program then takes at least five years, with two examinations and a final provisional fellowship year.⁹ Specialist registration rests on an approved qualification such as an accredited college fellowship.¹⁰

In smaller towns, rural generalists with advanced skills in anaesthetics give anaesthesia alongside general practice, and every state and the Northern Territory runs a rural generalist training program.¹¹

Where the Medical Practitioners Award 2020 covers the role, a full-time Specialist earns at least $2,337.21 a week, and a Principal Specialist $2,962.73, before the 10% on-call allowance the award pays specialists, who must be available for reasonable on-call and recall duties (a Specialist's rate is $2,570.93 a week with it⁷), from 1 July 2026.⁶ The award covers employers of doctors in workplaces such as hospitals and day procedure centres, and not employees under a state public sector award.⁶

Market pay is far higher. Full-time anaesthetists had median earnings of $8,293 a week in May 2025, nationally, the highest of the medical practitioner groups with a published median, against $1,852 for all occupations.² That group includes anaesthetic registrars and counts employees only, and much anaesthetic work is billed privately, so we talk with you early about salary, sessions and private practice rights.

Tell us about the theatre load: elective and emergency lists, the surgical specialties you support, obstetric and paediatric cover, and the on-call roster. Then the level, from a newly fellowed specialist to a director who will lead the department.

Let us know the salary and any private practice rights, the intensive care or high dependency support on site, and whether pain medicine or perioperative work is part of it.

The on-call roster is often the deciding factor: how many anaesthetists share it, how often nights are disturbed, and the obstetric load. We look first for specialists with ties to your region, then for those ready to leave a busy city roster.

Tell us about housing, relocation help, leave for courses and conferences, and private practice options. We raise them in the first conversation.

If the right person needs a visa or sponsorship, our sister business Australian Immigration Agency can advise.

Register with Hire Australia and tell us your fellowship or training stage, your registration, your case mix and the towns that interest you. Specialists and senior registrars are welcome, and we will talk with you about roles that fit.