American attending New Zealand Med School & Work/Residency Questions

[ahisma]

I'm looking for a career change and considering medical school. One of my (and my family's) biggest concerns is the ability to live a balanced life and spend sufficient time with my family, especially during residency. Working 80+ hours a week just seems absurd to me and I cannot see how I can raise a family on that schedule.

I am thinking other countries outside the US might be better in this regard. Do you think this is the case? Are NZ residencies still 80+ hours/week like in the US? I've seen a few global surveys where NZ hospitals ranked much higher in patient satisfaction. Are they generally better work environments than their American counterparts?

Also, I am wondering about immigration prospects for foreign students in New Zealand. Are students generally allowed to stay after graduation and search for employment? Is it difficult for a non-citizen physician to get employment? Is it easier to be trained in NZ and get permanent residency than to train in the US and immigrate afterwards? The requirements for the latter seem quite onerous.

I greatly appreciate any insights shared.

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[SilentNight]

Hi ahisma -

I was in a similar situation as you desiring a balance in life while pursuing a medical career. Currently, the healthcare system in NZ is quite good when I talk to medical students and registrars working in the DHBs (district health boards). NZ residency programmes are longer than the US counterparts, but the hours are much more bearable. Communicating with a few clinical year medical students, their clerkship hours range from 35-60 hrs/week whereas registrars are 40-80 hrs/week. Again, varies with specialty but not as high as in the US.

The training process in NZ is longer than Aus and the US. After medical school, usually there is 1-2 years as a House Officer followed by applying for a registrar training scheme (specialty), which last between 3-6 years. Long road but a more balanced life I find.

In regards to immigration prospects, there has been news about Australian intern shortages, but so far NZ is not experiencing this as many NZ doctors are immigrating to Australia for their training due partly to higher compensation rates. This would open up more training positions in NZ.

I would say that going from NZ/Aus to the US is a longer, uphill road than US to NZ/Aus. I may be wrong. I suggest getting your medical school/training where you want to eventually settle down.

Getting a medical degree from Aus or NZ is recognized in both countries, so there are no extra paperwork/exams to take to apply for training programmes.

A negative side is that international students are at the bottom of the preference list when it comes to internship placement, so if you decide to practice in Aus or NZ, be prepared to work in rural or shortage areas for 1-2 years. Once you secure an internship though, you would be able to compete on the same level for specialty (registrar) training.

I hope you find this information useful.

Cheers!