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Why Canberra Health Services

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Great teams

happy staff member

Great salaries

happy relocated staff

Get paid to relocate

Learn more about employee benefits below.

Canberra is growing and so are we

We are expanding Canberra Hospital to include a new emergency, surgical and critical health care building. The facility will include more operating rooms, treatment spaces, intensive care beds and new helipads. Construction has already begun on the new facility and is due to open in 2024.

The Canberra Hospital Expansion site has more information about the expansion work currently happening. Planning and design is also underway for a state-of-the-art hospital in Canberra’s northside. The northside hospital will provide modern, sustainable and accessible infrastructure to support our growing city.

Benefits of living and working in Canberra

Currently living interstate? There’s more to Canberra than what meets the eye. Find out more about what a career in Canberra can offer you.

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Less traffic and an easy commute

Canberra is a well planned, 20-minute city – so you can get around without the hassle.

And less time spent in traffic means more time with your friends and family. Every day. Some of our office locations also offer free parking.

happy couple at sunset

Australia’s happiest city

Research by the University of Canberra has found our residents to be the happiest in Australia. Canberra has the nation’s highest average income, some of shortest commuting times and good access to services and green spaces – all contributing to high wellbeing scores.

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The knowledge capital

Canberra’s population is the best educated in Australia. Your career will benefit from access to world-class universities, while your family benefit from easy access to some of the best government and independent schools in the country.

Leave a smaller carbon footprint

Canberra is a progressive city, and sustainability matters to us. We're the first city in mainland Australia to have achieved a 100% renewable energy supply and the highest number of electric vehicle charge stations per capita. Canberra is the place to be if you're seeking a more sustainable way to live and work.

Employment benefits

There are lots of benefits to being a team member at CHS, from competitive salaries to professional development and minimum nurse/midwife-to-patient ratios. We’ve highlighted some below. For a full list of benefits, read the relevant Enterprise Agreement (EA), details below.

Work-life balance

We help team members balance their personal and work life by providing:

  • permanent, casual, part time and temporary employment opportunities
  • flexible work arrangements and job sharing opportunities
  • safe job transfers while pregnant (for specified professions as per relevant enterprise agreement).

Salary packaging

You can salary package pre-tax dollars from your salary towards:

  • superannuation
  • novated car lease
  • novated e-bike lease
  • portable electronic devices (conditions apply).

In addition, as an employee in an Eligible Public Hospital and Ambulance (EPHA) position, you do not have to pay Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) on a number of ordinarily taxable items. This exemption applies to taxable items with a grossed-up value of up to $17,000 per annum. This can be used for:

  • own home mortgage
  • private home rental
  • personal loan
  • employee benefits card.

For a full list of benefits, read the relevant Enterprise Agreement (EA).

Investing in your education

We want to create an inclusive learning and teaching culture, which makes CHS a great place to work and supports the delivery of exceptional care.

We will support your learning and teaching goals through innovative and reliable training support and services, underpinned by our organisational values.

Our learning management system is here to guide your orientation, mandatory e-learning, credentialing and special interests – if you want to be a clinical expert in your field, educator or researcher.

Support for learning and teaching development

  • Study assistance for external study leading to a qualification. This is done through discretionary access to paid study leave and financial assistance.
  • Study assistance, psychological support and structured teaching programs for multiple disciplines.
  • Access to honorary academic appointments.
  • Access to study leave and medical education expenses fund for senior medical officers.
  • Access to Grand Rounds.
  • Post graduate and professional development scholarships for allied health, nursing and midwifery.
  • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Enrolled Nursing Scholarships.
  • Qualification allowances for further studies in nursing and midwifery.
  • Clinical supervision, preceptorship and train the assessor programs to support allied health, nursing, midwifery and medical staff.
  • Access to the ACTPS learning and development opportunities.

Research

Research is one of our three strategic priorities. Our aim is to create an inclusive research community, which delivers exceptional health care. We are committed to continuously grow our research activities and to support research interested clinicians and clinician researchers by providing access to:

  • research mentorship programs, including CHS Mentorship Programme and the Franklin Women’s Programme
  • Synergy – Nursing & Midwifery Research Centre – ACT Health Directorate
  • research education and research support (biostatistics/ethics submissions)
  • local research funding
  • honorary academic appointments and access to research software
  • academic protected time through fellowships and scholarships
  • on site and off site pre-clinical facilities.

Embracing and promoting diversity and inclusion

We are committed to building an inclusive workplace that values all team members and recognises their unique qualities, ideas, voices and perspectives. We acknowledge and celebrate the differences among all people to enable our workforce to create exceptional health care together. We aim to make sure that our workforce and the services provided are representative of the wider ACT community.

We are proud of our Statement of Commitment, developed in partnership with the CHS Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Consumer Reference Group. We are also delivering actions from the CHS Disability Action and Inclusion Plan 2022 – 2025 to improve our health services for people with disability, including CHS team members.

We empower our team members to create and grow team-led staff networks that provide a space for seeking support, sharing resources and advocating for change. We currently have a Pride Network and a Disability and Carers Network, and we are working on launching more staff networks in partnership with CHS team members.

Committed to your health and wellbeing

We are committed to providing a physically and mentally healthy workplace. To this end, we have a range of health, safety, financial and physical programs for team members. We also provide support for team members who get injured, as well as programs for managers to help prevent injuries or manage team members’ return to work.

Working in health care can be highly demanding and very rewarding. Health care services can create a ‘calling’ for helping people, a strong sense of purpose and the feeling that the work is being appreciated. However, it can be challenging personally and professionally.

As a health service, nothing is more important than your wellbeing. A healthy workforce allows us to deliver care to the highest standard and quality in a timely manner. Team member health and wellbeing is everyone’s responsibility – ours (CHS), yours (team members) and our leaders (managers and executives). You are our number one priority.

Work health and safety

CHS is committed to providing a safe work environment where the health, safety and wellbeing of our team members and patients is taken seriously at all times. 91% of our staff feel CHS is a safe workplace according to the 2023 Workplace Culture Survey.

We are committed to reducing and preventing Occupational Violence by adopting a risk based and multifaceted approach, through education and training, safety in design principles and tiered behaviour management sanctions.

At CHS, we offer free Staff Early Intervention Physiotherapy services. Our injury management services strive to support a safe and sustainable return to work for our ill/injured staff.

Staff Health and Wellbeing Strategy

Our CHS Wellbeing Strategy 2023 – 2026 (the Strategy) is all about prevention, promotion and support.

We have a dedicated ‘Support for staff’ page on our intranet where you will find a copy of the Strategy, as well as a wide range of useful resources to support your health and wellbeing.

The Strategy was developed using evidence from health care specific research. It was co-designed with, and recognises the changing needs of, CHS team members. It outlines our commitment to invest in team member health and wellbeing as a priority, to ensure you have the support you need to deliver exceptional care.

Wellbeing events

We have an annual calendar of wellbeing events to help support your health and wellbeing. These include our biennial Wellbeing Expos, which take place in most of our facilities. Pick up your Wellbeing Passport on the day, visit all stalls to have the passport stamped for your chance to win a prize.

We also have a wide range of wellbeing workshops, including:

  • compassion fatigue
  • conflict resolution
  • accidental counsellor.

Quiet Spaces

Recognising the need for team members to rest and recharge while at work, there are several rooms across CHS to use for quiet contemplation, rest, recharge, reflection, meditation or prayer.

We also offer dedicated breastfeeding rooms across CHS and are an accredited Best Practice Breastfeeding Friendly Workplace.

Your personal and confidential Wellbeing Index App

When you join CHS, you will have access to a personal and confidential Wellbeing Index App - a new team member benefit.

The app provides a fast, easy way to measure your wellbeing over time. It assesses how you’re travelling and offers supportive CHS specific and national wellbeing resources based on your answers. It only takes a few minutes to complete, and you can choose to do it on a monthly or quarterly basis.

By downloading the app, you’ll also help ensure CHS continues to be a great place to work. ‘How?’ we hear you ask. The anonymous, de-identified data means more targeted and effective support for all team members’ wellbeing. It allows us to address any issues at an organisational level and offer tailored support for different professional groups.

Employee Assistance Program (EAP)

Employee assistance offers short term, solution focussed, confidential counselling and wellbeing support for ACT Government team members and their immediate families to deal with challenges in their personal and or work lives. We encourage our team members to seek help early.

There’s more information on the EAP on the intranet.

Counselling can be delivered via:

  • telephone
  • online
  • in person
  • onsite – at Canberra Hospital, North Canberra Hospital & University of Canberra Hospital.

Our EAP counsellors are well trained and qualified to work with a diverse range of people, but if you would feel more comfortable you can request that your practitioner be male, female or be in some other way representative of you. EAP offers specialist support lines for:

  • youth and students
  • spiritual and pastoral
  • LGBTQIA+
  • First Nations
  • elder care
  • disability & carers
  • domestic & family violence.

Celebrating our achievements

We celebrate the achievements of our team members and recognise and reward a job well done.  We have:

  • annual Chief Executive Officer awards to celebrate individuals and teams who exemplify our vision, role and values
  • quarterly values awards to recognise excellence and celebrate individuals and teams who consistently exemplify our values
  • length of service awards to formally recognise team members who have been employed within the ACT Public Service (ACTPS) for 20, 25, 30, 35 and 40+ years of service.

Environmental supports

Canberra Health Services is supporting the ACT Government to edge closer towards its vision of securing a liveable and healthy future for our community through the ACT Climate Change Strategy 2019-2025. As part of this strategy, we are working towards a zero emissions public health sector by 2040.

CHS has established a Waste Management Plan that minimises the environmental impact of waste generation, treatment and disposal.

We also support and implement the ACTSmart recycling program, have a smoke-free environment across all our facilities and grounds.

Find out more about building a life and career in Canberra.

Resources

Want to learn more? Check out the documents below.

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In the case of a life threatening emergency, dial Triple Zero (000).

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Contact us

Switchboard Canberra Hospital
(02) 5124 0000

International callers
+61 (2) 5124 0000

Switchboard North Canberra Hospital
(02) 6201 6111

International callers
+61 (2) 6201 6111

Switchboard other hospitals and services
(02) 5124 0000

International callers
+61 (2) 5124 0000

The switchboard handles all calls to, from and within the hospital 24 hours/seven days a week