80 first-year doctors have begun placements across Tasmania, with the state’s health system recording its strongest retention of locally trained graduates.
Among them is Laura Sliskovic, who grew up in the small east coast town of Bicheno.
Her decision to pursue medicine was shaped by her mother’s breast cancer diagnosis when she was 15.
“Because we lived rurally, it meant she had to travel quite an extensive distance to get care,” she said.
“When she did travel that distance she got exceptional care.”
Sliskovic completed her final two years of study in Burnie and is now working in the Royal Hobart Hospital’s older persons acute care unit.
She plans to stay in Tasmania and pursue a career in remote health.
“Community is very important to me and taking on the role as a doctor is taking on a role in my community that can benefit others,” she said.
Lucy Connolly is another new intern at the Royal Hobart Hospital, having relocated from Queensland.
She said the hospital offered a unique combination of tertiary-level training and a strong sense of community.
“You kind of get the best of both worlds here,” she said.
Dr Kate Burbury, executive director of medical services and research, said the retention of local graduates had improved significantly.
She said all but eight University of Tasmania graduates with Tasmanian connections had stayed on for their intern year.
“That’s close to 100 graduates, the majority of them staying inside Tasmania,” she said.
Dr Burbury said more doctors were also choosing to remain beyond their first year to continue their training.
She described the workforce as “stable”, with reduced reliance on short-term external placements.
“Certainly, compared to previous years, our dependency on external people for short-term placements has diminished substantially,” she said.
Health Minister Bridget Archer said the intake of first-year doctors was expected to reach 100 by mid-2026.
“Many of these first-year doctors that are straying are homegrown here in Tasmania,” she said.
“They are Tasmanians that have undertaken their training here in Tasmania at the University of Tasmania and are now entering work in our health system.”
The new doctors will initially work in hospital settings before opportunities open up in community and regional centres.
