Doctor spent 3 years and $55,000 to work after 438 job rejections
Dr Maha Selvanathan applied for 438 jobs before finding one, then waited three years and spent $55,000 to start work.
Selvanathan moved from Malaysia in 2011 to be with her husband and spent months proving her qualifications and English. Almost two years later she got permanent residency but faced a 10-year requirement to work in high-need areas.
The one clinic that offered her a job had to advertise for six months to prove it needed her. Dr Selvanathan was barred from working during this time.
Meanwhile her husband, an IT worker, could not find a job in Armidale. The Australian Medical Association told parliament some foreign doctors are going homeless while waiting for approval.
Highly trained specialists are being poached by countries with faster systems.
- 438
- Job applications
- $55,000
- Cost to start work
- 3 years
- Time to approval
- 10 years
- Work moratorium period
Why it mattersAustralia loses skilled doctors to bureaucratic delays while rural healthcare remains understaffed.
AustraliaRural doctor shortages and Australia's ability to retain qualified international medical graduates who prop up provincial healthcare.
✓ Claims checked against the source. checked 12 h ago
