Junior Medical Officer careers

A medical career with Canberra Health Services offers:

• Competitive pay rates
• Excellent working conditions
• Progression pathways for clinical, research, education, and management at all levels
• Education and training allowance
• Salary packaging with full fringe benefits tax concessions
• Interstate and overseas reimbursement for relocation expenses

See our current vacancies for employment opportunities.

Visit the Enterprise Agreements page for more information.

Medical internships

Internship is an exciting and sometimes challenging transition from medical school. We make every effort to ensure you feel supported and prepared with a dedicated prevocational medical education team that supports your welfare, training and education, and transition into internship, and also includes a dedicated staff psychologist as part of the team.

Our internships equip you with the necessary clinical skills to help you function as a mature, competent and knowledgeable Resident Medical Officer (RMO).

Your internship begins with a comprehensive two-week orientation program, including practical/skills workshops and activities promoting junior medical officer wellbeing. This is followed by a period of shadowing experienced junior medical officers to give you a solid introduction to your role.

You will have one and a half hours of protected teaching time every Tuesday, and the sessions are recorded. Additionally, there is a dedicated Canberra JMO website with a large library of teaching presentations, consult tips and practical skills.

All our sites are fully implementing the New National Framework for Prevocational (PGY1 and PGY2) Medical Training.

We provide you with specific terms and rotations to make sure you meet the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) criteria for full unconditional registration. This includes terms that meet all requirements of the New Prevocational Framework. These rotations may include secondments to North Canberra Hospital, Goulburn Base Hospital and South-East Regional Hospital. Interns are only allocated to CRMEC accredited terms.

The Director of Prevocational Education and Training is available to address your professional development queries. This includes career advice if required.

ACT Intern Priority List - 2025 Intake

*If you graduated prior to 2023 or have previously received an internship offer you are not able to be guaranteed an internship offer. You are eligible to apply but will be considered in Category 4.

More information

We have further information on:

• National intern data audit
• 2024 intake intern presentation (PPTX, 970.96 KB)

For more information contact the Canberra Health Services Medical Officer Support Unit on (02) 5124 2779 or email tchmosu@act.gov.au

Resident Medical Officers

A wide range of rotations are available for Resident Medical Officers at The Canberra Hospital, North Canberra Hospital, South-East Regional Hospital, Cooma Hospital, Moruya Hospital and Goulburn Base Hospital.

All our sites are fully implementing the New National Framework for Prevocational (PGY1 and PGY2) Medical Training. Special efforts are made to ensure you have access to rotations that contribute to the accreditation terms of your prospective college.

There are also service senior Medical Resident Officer positions available that enable PGY3+ JMO’s to gain 6 months experience in an area of interest (i.e radiology, psychiatry, paediatrics anaesthetics) and spend 6 months in a service role such as extended day surgery unit, acute medical unit.

Registrars

Depending on your specialty, various rotations are available for Registrars at the Canberra Hospital, North Canberra Hospital, South-East Regional Hospital, Shoalhaven Hospital, Wagga Wagga Rural Referral Hospital, Moruya Hospital, Bathurst Hospital, Orange Hospital, Albury Wodonga Health and Goulburn Base Hospital.

Education

Aligned with the Australian National University, our teaching hospital emphasises a strong partnership, focusing on research and education, offering prospective junior doctors a dynamic environment that fosters a culture of learning and teaching, ensuring a comprehensive medical education. There are a range of informal/teaching on-the-run opportunities at CHS, as well as formal education (online and in-person attendance). The Australian Curriculum Framework (ACF) shapes the formal educational curriculum. Below are some examples of formal and informal teaching:

• Intern teaching sessions (undertaken every week) – protected teaching time 90 minutes once a week
• RMO teaching sessions (undertaken every week as small case-based teaching sessions) – protected teaching time
• Short case-based learning (pathology and imaging)
• Discharge summary workshops
• Clinical skills/procedure practical workshops (Suturing, Ultrasound Guided IVC, Lumbar puncher etc)
• JMO specific simulation and interdisciplinary simulation sessions
• Grand rounds
• Leadership program accessible to PGY2+
• Hospital-wide teaching calendar

Junior Medical Officer welfare

The wellbeing of our junior medical officers is a top priority at Canberra Health Services. Working in medicine comes with specific stressors and we have various supports in place to help you through difficult times.

Blue Buddies

Blue buddies provide peer to peer support and can provide support, advice and information on issues relating to:

• Facing difficult conversations with patients
• Talking about difficult events
• Inappropriate workplace behaviours
• Managing your work-life balance or time management
• Strategies and support when applying for training programs.

Blue buddies actively engage in proactive support through training sessions, brief interviews, and coffee vouchers to build connections and relationships.

Department of Prevocational Education and Training

The DPET office provides training, education and support to all junior medical officers. The office consists of:

• Director – staff specialist
• Deputy Director – staff specialist
• Deputy Director – IMG – staff specialist
• Psychologist
• Prevocational Medical Education Officers – staff specialist (3 positions)
  • Medicine
  • Surgery
  • O&G, Paediatrics, ED, Psychiatry and Justice health
• Medical Education Support Team: Manager, Coordinator and Assessment/Evaluation Officer
• Research lead.

Speaking up for Safety

Speaking up for safety is a program that empowers and encourages staff to respectfully and confidently communicate patient safety concerns to colleagues. If someone speaks up for safety – regardless of their position within the organisation, all staff involved will stop and consider the practice that they are undertaking and receive the concerns voices in a professional manner.

Respect at Work

We are committed to maintaining a positive work environment and a safe, healthy workplace free from inappropriate behaviour.

We all have a responsibility to make sure we are aware of and comply with, the standards of behaviour expected. We have a strong support network and policies in place for you to speak to someone if you witness or experience inappropriate behaviour.

Employee Assistance Program

The Employee Assistance Program gives each team member six free professional and confidential support session per year for you and members of your immediate family.

Other useful resources for prospective Junior Doctors:

1. Canberra Health Services JMO

   This is a place where we make available wellbeing, career information, recordings, and lecture notes for all teaching sessions, consult tips etc)

2. Canberra Region Medical Education Council (CRMEC)
   • Term descriptions
   • Register of terms
   • Junior Doctor and Supervisor Resources
3. Welcome to Canberra

Upcoming JMO recruitment dates