Report finds almost half of regional veterinarian jobs take more than a year to fill

The Veterinary Association is calling on the federal government for more support, with regional services bearing the brunt of workforce shortages.

Transcript

00:00The Australian Veterinary Association is calling on the federal government to help find ways

00:06that it can improve workforce shortage issues.

00:09This comes at a time when we know people are leaving the industry and people are also facing

00:13mental health issues.

00:15The latest AVA survey found that nearly 37 percent of veterinary recruitment vacancies

00:20were taking 12 months or longer to fill.

00:23That issue was particularly pronounced in regional areas where nearly half of all surveyed

00:27roles were taking 12 months or longer.

00:30Now Acting President Diana Barker says that it's the eighth year that they've been seeing

00:34workforce shortages as a major issue.

00:37She says that veterinarians aren't being treated like other medical practitioners, people like

00:41doctors or dentists.

00:43She says that veterinarians are really important though for their local communities, especially

00:47in those sorts of regional areas where there might not be a lot of other options.

00:51So she, alongside the Australian Veterinary Association, is calling on the federal government

00:56for more support to bolster the workforce.