Perioperative nurse recruitment for regional employers

Perioperative nurses care for patients before, during and after surgery or a procedure. In a theatre suite that covers the scrub nurse who manages instruments at the table, the scout or circulating nurse, the anaesthetic nurse who works with the anaesthetist, and the recovery nurse in the post-anaesthesia care unit. Tell us if your theatres also run day surgery, endoscopy or procedural lists.

In a smaller hospital one nurse may cover several of those roles across a week, so tell us which ones your roster needs. Practice in Australian theatres is guided by the ACORN Standards 2026, which are designed for interdisciplinary perioperative teams across perioperative and procedural settings.⁶

There is no separate award rate for perioperative nurses. Where the Nurses Award 2020 covers the role, a registered nurse at level 1, pay point 1 earns at least $1,219.50 a week from 1 July 2026, and a registered nurse at level 2, also known as a clinical nurse, at least $1,504.40 a week at pay point 1.³

On-call matters in theatre. The award pays an on-call allowance, except to registered nurses at levels 4 and 5, only when the employer requires the nurse to be on call at home or another agreed place: $28.66 for each period of up to 24 hours on a weekday, $43.17 on a Saturday and $50.37 on a Sunday, public holiday or non-rostered day; the whole period takes the rate for the day holding most of it. A nurse recalled to the workplace while on call is paid at least 3 hours at the overtime rate.³ Public hospitals pay under their state's own instrument instead, such as the Queensland Health EB12 agreement.¹⁰

No earnings figure exists for perioperative nurses alone. They are counted in the Registered Nurses group (ANZSCO 2544), whose national median full-time earnings were $2,192 a week in May 2025.¹ That median covers all registered nurses, so we talk with you about the rate, on-call and housing that will compete for a theatre nurse in your location.

Start with the role: scrub and scout, anaesthetics, recovery, or a mix, and the specialties on your lists, such as orthopaedics, general surgery, obstetrics or endoscopy. Say whether you can support a nurse who is new to theatre, or need someone who can take charge of a list from the first week.

Then the practical details: theatre days and hours, the on-call roster and how often recalls happen, whether the role covers day surgery or the post-anaesthesia care unit, and any course you require, such as advanced life support.

We start with nurses already in your region and then widen the search to people planning a move. Tell us how far from the hospital an on-call nurse can live.

Tell us early about housing, relocation costs, how the on-call roster is shared, and whether part-time hours are possible. 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 the theatre roles and specialties you have worked in, the courses you hold and where you would like to work. Nurses wanting to move into theatre are welcome to register too.