Midwives, Neonatal, SCN and NICU Nurses jobs in Australia

Licensing

Licensing by state

Midwifery registration is national, not state-based. Midwives register with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia through Ahpra under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law, and that registration is recognised in every state and territory. Midwife is a separate registration from registered nurse — holding one does not give you the other, and many midwives hold both. Registration does not vary between states, but several things do: the employer (each state's public maternity services, or a private hospital), the industrial instrument (state nursing and midwifery enterprise agreements cover most public midwives rather than the federal Nurses Award 2020), each state's drugs and poisons law governing what a midwife may administer and supply, and privately practising midwifery requirements including professional indemnity insurance, eligible midwife notation and NMBA endorsement for scheduled medicines for those who prescribe. Working-with-children and vulnerable-people checks are also state-issued and are almost always required in maternity and neonatal settings.

the Australian Capital Territory

Canberra Health Services provides the territory's maternity and neonatal intensive care services, drawing a large surrounding NSW catchment, under the ACT Public Sector Nursing and Midwifery Enterprise Agreement. Medicines are regulated by the Medicines, Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 2008 (ACT). Working with Vulnerable People (WWVP) registration is required.

New South Wales

NSW Local Health Districts employ midwives under the Public Health System Nurses' and Midwives' (State) Award. Medicines are governed by the Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 1966 (NSW) and Regulation, which sets out what midwives may administer under authority. A Working With Children Check from the Office of the Children's Guardian is required, along with Category A vaccination compliance. NSW has invested heavily in Midwifery Group Practice continuity models.

the Northern Territory

NT Health's Top End and Central Australia Health Services employ midwives under the Northern Territory Public Sector Nurses and Midwives' Enterprise Agreement. Medicines are governed by the Medicines, Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 2012 (NT). NT midwifery involves remote antenatal clinics, extended stays for women relocating to birth, Aboriginal-led Birthing on Country initiatives and strong cultural safety expectations; an Ochre Card is required.

Queensland

Queensland Health's Hospital and Health Services run public maternity units and neonatal services, with midwives covered by the Nurses and Midwives (Queensland Health and Department of Education) Certified Agreement. Medicines authorities sit under the Medicines and Poisons Act 2019 (Qld), including midwifery-specific arrangements. A Blue Card is required — maternity and neonatal work is child-related. Remote maternity models mean many Queensland women transfer to regional centres to birth, so escort and retrieval work is common.

South Australia

SA Health Local Health Networks, including the Women's and Children's Health Network, employ midwives under the Nursing/Midwifery (South Australian Public Sector) Enterprise Agreement. Medicines are governed by the Controlled Substances Act 1984 (SA). A DHS Working with Children Check is required. MedSTAR Kids provides neonatal retrieval statewide.

Tasmania

The Department of Health Tasmania runs maternity services at the Royal Hobart, Launceston General and North West Regional hospitals, with midwives covered by the Nurses and Midwives (Tasmanian State Service) Award and Agreement. Medicines fall under the Poisons Act 1971 (Tas). Registration to Work with Vulnerable People (RWVP) is mandatory. High-acuity neonates are frequently retrieved to Victorian tertiary NICUs.

Victoria

Victorian public health services employ midwives under the Nurses and Midwives (Victorian Public Sector) (Single Interest Employers) Enterprise Agreement, and Victoria's legislated midwife-to-patient ratios under the Safe Patient Care Act 2015 apply to maternity units — the only such legislated ratios in the country. Medicines fall under the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981 (Vic). A Victorian Working with Children Check is required, and neonatal retrieval is coordinated by PIPER.

Western Australia

WA Health delivers maternity care through metropolitan Health Service Providers, the Child and Adolescent Health Service and the WA Country Health Service, under a WA state industrial agreement. Medicines are regulated by the Medicines and Poisons Act 2014 (WA). Vast distances mean remote antenatal care, planned transfer to Perth or regional hubs, and the Newborn Emergency Transport Service are core parts of practice. A Working with Children Check (WA) is required.