Area of Need

An Area of Need (AON) is any location in which there is a lack of specific medical practitioners or where there are medical positions that remain unfilled even after recruitment efforts have taken place over a period of time. Area of Need applies to both public and private sector positions. They are determined by the State and Territory Governments. Methods of defining them vary.

All overseas trained doctors (OTDs) are required to work in an AON when they first come to Australia, so hospitals will need to apply for Area of Need approval before offering a position to an OTD. Applications for Area of Need approval should be made by the employer to the relevant State or Territory Health Department, not the OTD.

If the position requires the doctor to provide services that will attract Medicare benefits, for example general practitioner services, then it must also be in a District of Workforce Shortage (DWS) for an OTD to be eligible to fill the vacancy. You can learn more about this in the General Practitioner section of the website.