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Useful experience for physicians includes:

• work in hospitals or other health-related work, such as in a clinic
• work involving caring for people.

Physicians may do some or all of the following:

• examine patients and investigate and identify complex medical problems
• consult with other medical professionals about patient care and treatment
• advise on medical treatment and discuss this with patients or their caregivers
• provide medical treatment, check patients' progress and provide follow-up care
• keep medical records and send final reports to general practitioners
• care for emergency referral patients, such as patients with critical illnesses
• teach medical students and trainee physicians
• carry out research.

Factors contributing to shortage of physicians

The shortage of physicians is due to:

• New Zealand's growing and ageing population, which means increasing demand for physicians to deal with illnesses and diseases
• an ageing workforce – nearly a third of specialist doctors, including physicians, are over 55 years old and due to retire in the next 10 years
• some physicians moving overseas for better pay and working conditions
• a worldwide shortage of specialist doctors, which means that it can be hard for New Zealand to attract physicians from overseas to work here.

General and many specialist physician roles including palliative medicine specialist, cardiologist, paediatrician and emergency medicine specialist appear on Immigration New Zealand's regional and long-term skill shortage lists. 

This means the Government is actively encouraging skilled physicians from overseas to work in New Zealand.

According to the Census, 1,260 physicians worked in New Zealand in 2018.

Extra payment for graduates working in hard-to-staff locations

The Ministry of Health runs a voluntary bonding scheme with payments to encourage graduate doctors to work in hard-to-staff communities and specialisations. 

• Ministry of Health website - information about the voluntary bonding scheme

Physicians mostly work for public and private hospitals

Physicians work in both public or private hospitals, and may also work in university medical schools. 

• Te Whatu Ora Health NZ employs all physicians who work in public hospitals.
• Private hospitals usually employ physicians on a casual basis.
• The medical schools at the Universities of Auckland and Otago employ physicians in teaching and research roles.

Medical Council of New Zealand (MCNZ)

0800 286 801 -enquiry@mcnz.org.nz -  www.mcnz.org.nz

Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP)

0508 697 227 - www.racp.edu.au

Physicians may progress to teach students and trainee physicians at larger hospitals. They can also become senior consultants responsible for their department, or clinical directors, combining an administrative role with a physician role.

Physicians can specialise in a number of areas, including:

Cardiologist

Cardiologists specialise in diseases of the heart.

General and Acute Care Physician

General and acute care physicians diagnose and manage conditions that may be complex, difficult to diagnose, or involve multiple organs and systems of the body.

Intensive Care Physician

Intensive care physicians diagnose and treat patients with acute, severe and life-threatening disorders of internal vital systems.

Medical Oncologist

Medical oncologists specialise in the treatment of cancer.

Neurologist

Neurologists specialise in diseases of the nervous system, including the brain.

Paediatrician

Paediatricians specialise in the medical care of infants, children and adolescents.

Physicians need to be:

• motivated and disciplined
• able to work well under pressure
• able to make good decisions, and solve problems
• good time managers 
• excellent at analysis and interpretation
• good at report writing
• good at communicating and inspiring confidence in others
• understanding of other cultures' attitudes to medical treatment.