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SKnipe értékelései:

John Hunter Hospital, Newcastle

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

Good Hospital, Great city to live, Wednesday, 15 August 2007

Hospital: Environment
Hospital: Facilities
Hospital: Admin
Training Opportunities
Time Off
Lifestyle: General
Lifestyle: Social Scene
Lifestyle: Facilites
Lifestyle: Cost of living

I have worked here for 5 years now after working in Scotland for a year after graduating 2001. I came out as an SHO1 equivalent (RMO) and was allocated with some flexibility 5 ten-week terms in Gen Med, Gen Surg, A+E, Paed and Relief.

Hospital Admin: Very accomodating to overseas docs. Always keen to recruit and at all grades of experience. The staff have changed there since I was there, but the RMOs don't have any major complaints. I think that if you wanted particular terms as RMO, then could easily negotiate into contract. Individual speciality have individual admin sections and can't comment on those except Paeds - which is where I am now. Paeds admin is great and employ quite a few O/S docs. Vacancies invariably crop up toward 2nd half of calendar year. Heaps of committees like infection control, policies, procedures and guidelines. WEBSITE TERRIBLE.

Training - The hospital offers positions which are accredited for Aussie Colleges in all of the speciality areas. Some accredited positions in the hospital are hard to get - mainly surgical, ortho, ENT, ophth. Should check before applying if this matters to you.

Experience - Has really good exposure in Emergency to Trauma (from all the car accidents). Other things are Cath labs, ICU retrieval, Neonatal Retrieval, Dialysis and Renal Transplant.

Environment - there is pretty decent professional respect across the board. Consultants are easy to talk to and Radiology are unusually friendly. Some nurses give women doctors a hard time and they call for stupid things (some things never change!). The work ethic here isn't as strong as in UK. Because the working week is generally shorter, residents don't always cover each other and go that extra yard for the new shift. It is quite variable though. More sick days - they are paid here.

Logistics - Everything is computerised. One program gives you access to hospital lab results, imaging, previous discharge summaries, patient lists (inpatient, OP, A+E), email, and sometime clinic letters. Most carry pagers, but more folk are carrying speed dial phones.

Working week: Variable. Pay by hour with extra for overtime or antisocial hours. Minimally 38 hrs/wk full time, but lots job share or P/T only. Have a system where you get "allocated days off" where you have one day off a month, paid. In return, you work extra 2 hrs per week.

Hospital Social: There is a Residents Association ($10/wk) which organises nights out regularly. Also weekly sports touch rugby on w/end. Have Muffin Mondays and Pizza Fridays weekly. Brit docs often club together and do social things together anyway because they come in the middle of the year.

Rotations - to Maitland, the Mater, Belmont, Royal Newcastle Centre all within 35kms of JHH.

Right thats the hospital, now for the city.

Newcastle has 200000 people.

Transport: Limited train service. Is regular to Sydney - 2.5 hours. Buses are OK, but not always on the route. All in all I'd say that a car is essential. No probs with getting 2nd hand car. Budget $4000-ish locally. The hospital is about 15 minutes drive from where the beaches, city centre and where most overseas docs live. A rush hour is taking 2 cycles to get through the lights!

Housing: Apparently there is rental shortage - reported nationally. The new docs here all managed to find something fairly quickly. Budget for $200 to $500/wk. There are some fully furnished flats around. Heaps of new apartments going up on the waterfront nears the beaches.

Cost of living: Much better in comparison to Capital cities. Sydney housing twice as expensive, twice as bad. Prime location is easily affordable here. Otherwise, I think living cost for other things are comparable. Pound goes along way, so if you can bring some over, you'll easily be able to get more form your stay.

Social Scene: Lots of pubs in the city centre with a few nightclubs. There is a healthy university here and the social scene is a reflection of that. Restaurants are OK and there are some good ones, but nothing on Sydney. Local media is reporting an increase of muggings late at night in city centre (after nightclubs close), and police have imposed 3am curfew. Is thought to be working.

Beaches: 7 easily reachable within 10 minutes drive of city centre, 4 in walking distance. Swimming, surfing, bodyboarding, windsurfing, kite-surfing, kayaking.
Scuba diving best a little up the coast - 1 hours drive.

Tourism - Easy driving distance to Port Stephens, Hunter vineyards (40mins)(get a tour, then you don't drive), Lake Macquarie and loads more beaches.
see www.huntertourism.com

Sydney is 2.5 hours by car or train and easily manageable for weekend breaks. I find it a bit claustrophobic but I've been there lots now. However it remains a fantastic city to visit.

Other: I play regular football and squash. Teams of touch and cricket are around and I'm starting basketball next week. Generally very social.

I have married an Aussie and have 2 kids, so my outlook might be a bit different from yours, but I started out like you. I've seen lots of Oz and Newcastle is a top place to live and work. The only reason not come here to would be if you need to live in a metropolis. I love it here.

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