The largest ever South Australian intake of medical interns has started work in our public hospitals this week, with 313 of these new doctors allocated jobs across local health networks.
The number of recruits is 28 more than last year (285) and 40 more than the last year of the previous Government (273 in 2021). This year's intake includes 33 interstate and 20 overseas medical graduates.
The intern year is the first year of practice for new doctors after graduating from medical school and provides extensive supervised clinical experience.
The intern year includes care of patients with chronic, acute and critical illnesses and pre-operative and procedural care.
New doctors will undertake rotations across different areas of public hospitals, gaining experience and exposure to different specialities such as emergency, medicine, psychiatry and surgery.
The following positions have been recruited this year:
| Network | Intern doctors recruited |
|---|---|
| Central Adelaide LHN | 129 |
| Northern Adelaide LHN | 73 |
| Southern Adelaide LHN | 81 |
| Barossa Hills Fleurieu LHN | 10 |
| Eyre and Far North | 2 |
| Flinders and Upper North | 2 |
| Limestone Coast | 7 |
| Riverland Mallee Coorong LHN | 7 |
| Yorke and Northern LHN | 2 |
The Malinauskas Labor Government is building a bigger health system - opening 600 extra hospital beds to create more capacity and hiring hundreds more doctors, nurses, ambos and allied health workers.
In the first two years of the Malinauskas Government 329 extra full time equivalent doctors were recruited above attrition to the public health system.
As put by Chris Picton
It's fantastic to have the biggest ever intake of 313 new medical interns joining our workforce to help care for South Australians across our hospitals.
This record recruitment is yet another sign that we have been able to demonstrate we are hiring more doctors and building a bigger health system for South Australians.
These new doctors will be well supported as they begin their practice and will have exposure to different areas of patient care through their internship program.
I'm thrilled to welcome these 313 new doctors who will be a valuable part of our health workforce as we continue to open hundreds more beds across our hospitals to boost capacity.
As put by Member for Adelaide Lucy Hood
Having a large new team of dynamic medical interns in our hospitals, including at our flagship Royal Adelaide Hospital, is fantastic for our community.
I know they'll work hard to provide exceptional care for South Australians.
This record intake of interns is all part of the Malinauskas Labor Government's commitment to building a bigger health system.
As put by Chief Medical Officer Michael Cusack
The beginning of every year sees new interns setting out on their professional careers in our health system and we are delighted to welcome the 2025 interns, who start this week. The intern year is when medical graduates begin to take on clinical responsibility and further develop their skills.
It marks the transition from medical student to medical practitioner and it's an exciting time for newly qualified professionals as they apply what they have learnt to the treatment of patients.
Interns work in a supervised environment as they continue their training and rotate through different specialties. They'll be consolidating their diagnostic, technical, analytical, interpersonal and communication skills in a supportive learning environment.
