Indigenous Australians are 3% of the population, yet they account for only 1.7% of the workforce.
The Women’s is located on the traditional lands of the Wurudjeri People. We pay our respects to their Elders both past and present and acknowledge all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the first people of this nation.
The Women’s has a long history of advocacy and we acknowledge that in Victoria, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders experience poorer health outcomes than non-Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Victorians in almost every health measure.
We take our role seriously as state-wide leaders on issues that affect Women’s health, and we are committed to ensuring that our patients and consumers are at the heart of everything we do. This includes providing culturally appropriate care to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women.
Growing our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander workforce under the Victorian Government’s Karreeta Yirramboi (meaning grow tomorrow) initiative, is just one way that we ensure our patients receive culturally appropriate care so that together, we can have a positive impact on the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, babies, families and communities in Victoria.
In 2013, the Women’s developed an Aboriginal Employment Plan, tailored to our unique environment of providing public health services to women. Under the guidance of our Aboriginal Employment Plan, the Women’s Aboriginal workforce has increased from 0.01% to 0.8% of our total workforce.
Our Aboriginal Employment Plan can be downloaded from this page.
Our work to increase the number of indigenous health professionals has focussed on education pathways. Today, we run the following employment programs every year:
- Graduate Nurse and Midwifery Program
- Victorian Aboriginal Nursing and Midwifery Cadetship program
- Victorian Aboriginal Allied Health Cadetship program
If you are an indigenous Australian and interested in learning more about starting a career at the Women’s, contact us today at HR Enquiries.
Are interested in knowing more about the Women’s recruitment process? Have a look through useful links or contact us today.
Work Experience and Student Placement
In Victoria, over half of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island population is under the age of 18 years. To support Victoria’s young and growing indigenous population, the Women’s has a priority placement system to high school students interested in a career in health and would like to undertake work experience within a hospital. We also support indigenous Nursing and Midwifery students to undertake a student placement at the Women’s.
For more information on our work experience program please contact HR or visit our work experience page.
For more information on our priority student placement program for Aboriginal Nursing and Midwifery students, please contact our clinical education team.
Gain some experience in working in a Women’s hospital
Would you like to know more about what it would be like to work in public health? Contact us today!
Related information
- Aboriginal Graduate Nurse and Midwife Programs - information about education and training on this website