Australia offers promising career opportunities for Indian pharmacists in the Healthcare system. Australia has become a more popular destination for Indian students and budding pharmacists who are willing to establish their careers.
This blog will provide necessary guidance on various opportunities in the pharmaceutical industry, the roadmap for aspiring Indian pharmacists, visa options, salary expectations, and how Elite Expertise will act as a catalyst in assisting these young pharmacists through this journey by training them for the licensure exam.
Why Indian Pharmacists are Considering Australia for Career Opportunities
Reasons Indians choose Australia as their destination for their pharmacy career are many, to name a few:
- High demand for pharmacists: The shortage of pharmacists, mainly in Australia’s regional and rural areas, is the reason for the high demand for pharmacists.
- Lucrative salary packages: Indian pharmacists look for salary structures in Australia as their destination. Australian pharmacists earn significantly higher salaries than those in India.
- Better work-life balance: Structured job timing makes Australia a better place for balancing work and life.
- Permanent residency opportunity: Australia offers multiple pathways for the pharmacists to achieve the permanent residency.
Overview of Pharmacy Careers and Scope in Australia
There are several varied career opportunities for pharmacists in Australia; below are a few roles that are presently being offered in Australia:
- Community Pharmacy: A Pharmacist who works in a retail pharmacy setting, such as a local pharmacy or drugstore. Their prime role is to dispense drugs or medications, deliver patient counselling, and offer healthcare advice to the patients. Community pharmacists play a vital role in Australia’s healthcare system by acting as the first point of contact for minor health issues.
- Hospital Pharmacy: A Pharmacist can work in a hospital or healthcare facility, refining patient outcomes by ensuring safe medication use, avoiding adverse drug reactions, and collaborating with healthcare teams to improve treatments.
- Clinical Pharmacy: Pharmacists working in aged care facilities, general practice settings, and specialty clinics are called clinical pharmacists. The role has recently expanded, with pharmacists now prescribing and managing chronic disease.
- Research and Academia: Pharmacists also contribute to pharmaceutical research and education.
- Industrial & Research Pharmacy: Pharmacists’ contribution to the industrial and research sector is enormous, particularly to pharmaceutical research, drug development, regulatory affairs, quality control, and so on.
Pathway for Indian Pharmacists to Work in Australia
To work in Australia as a pharmacist, the Indian pharmacists must meet a few mandatory requirements:
- Document evaluation: The Australian Pharmaceutical Council checks a few documents to see if you are eligible for further steps to meet Australian standards.
- Assessment through the OPRA Exam: The OPRA Exam, also called the Overseas Pharmacist Readiness Assessment, is the Australia licensure exam. It replaced the Knowledge Assessment of Pharmaceutical Sciences (KAPS) exam. It tests the candidate’s knowledge and competency for practising in Australian Healthcare.
- Apply for Provisional Registration: After clearing the OPRA exam, apply for your visa and move to Australia. The first thing you should do after you migrate is apply for provisional registration with the Pharmacy Board of Australia and find an internship.
- Complete a Supervised Internship: A total of 1575 hours of internship should be completed under the supervision of a registered pharmacist or a preceptor.
- Pass the Intern Written and Oral Exams: After completing at least 75% of the internship hours, candidates will be eligible for a last test of the Intern written and oral exam to obtain full registration.
- Get your General Registration: Once all the above-mentioned requirements are fulfilled, pharmacists receive their full registration to practice independently in Australia without the supervision of a preceptor.
Differences in Pharmacy Practice Between India and Australia
- Strict Regulations: Australia has a strict regulatory framework ensuring patient safety and medication management.
- Expanded Roles: Australian pharmacists can prescribe a few medicines in some states and provide vaccinations, which is not the same in India.
- Focus on Patient Counselling: Additional importance is placed on patient interaction and education.
- Advanced Technology: Pharmacy operations in Australia leverage digital prescription systems and automation for enhanced efficacy and accuracy.
- Scope of Practise: In India, pharmacists mainly dispense medicines in pharmacies. In contrast, pharmacists in Australia have a broader role, which includes prescribing rights in certain States like Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, and so on. The roles also include medication reviews, vaccination, and chronic disease management.
- Work environment: Pharmacists in Australia are not restricted to retail or community pharmacies but work in hospitals, aged care, and GP clinics, collaborating with other healthcare teams like doctors, General physicians, etc. In contrast, in India, Community pharmacists mostly dispense medications in retail settings. Hospital pharmacies are growing, but there is a lot of scope for development.
- Salary & Job Prospects: When it comes to salaries, in India, salaries are generally lower due to high pharmacist saturation compared to Australia. The salaries in Australia for pharmacists are competitive, especially in rural areas where pharmacists offer higher pay and sponsorship opportunities due to workforce shortages.
Migration and Visa Options for Indian Pharmacists
There are various Visa options for Indian pharmacists to migrate to Australia; listed are a few of them:
- Subclass 186 Visa (Employer Nomination Scheme Visa): A permanent pharmacist visa sponsored by an Australian employer.
- Subclass 491 Visa (Skilled Work Regional Visa): If you want to work in regional Australia with a pathway to permanent residency, this option is great for you. This provisional visa allows you to live, work, and study in designated regional areas of Australia for up to five years.
- Subclass 190 Visa (Skilled Nominated Visa): Permanent residency visa for pharmacists sponsored by a state or territory.
- Subclass 482 Visa (Temporary Skill Shortage Visa): Employers-sponsored Skilled pharmacists can choose this path. This visa option allows employers to bridge the gap in the country’s shortage of skilled labour.
Visa Requirements for Indian Pharmacists to Practise as Pharmacists in Australia
Mentioned below are the Visa requirements for pharmacists to migrate to Australia from India:
- Get your skills assessed by the Australian Pharmacy Council (APC) and get a positive response from them.
- Clear the OPRA exam.
- Obtain an offer of employment or sponsorship (for employer-sponsored visas).
- Clear your English language proficiency test with the required score.
Salary Expectations for Pharmacists in Australia
The salaries in Australia vary with the various factors like experience and location of work:
| Pharmacist: | Salary |
| Registered Pharmacist | AUD 75,000 – 100,000 per year. |
| Intern Pharmacist: | AUD 50,000 – 65,000 per year. |
| Senior/Consultant Pharmacist | AUD 100,000 – 140,000 per year. |
| Hospital Pharmacist: | AUD 85,000 – 120,000 per year. |
The bonus for Pharmacists working in rural areas is that they may receive higher salaries and additional incentives due to the shortage.
How Elite Expertise Helps Indian Pharmacists
Our services for Australian pathway include:
- Skills assessment: We provide guidance for the skills assessment, making it easier for you.
- OPRA Exam Preparation: Comprehensive training is provided to help Indian pharmacists pass the OPRA exam, which is difficult to pass as the syllabus is vast.
- Australian Intern Written and Oral Exam Training: Extensive coaching for the Intern exams is provided.
- PTE Academic (English Language Proficiency) Training: We train pharmacists who need to meet English language proficiency requirements, which is a mandate for migrating to Australia, by getting their preferred scores.
Final Thoughts
The Career opportunities Australia offers to Indian pharmacists are tremendous. This path can be made easy with proper support and mentoring, considering preparation is the key.
At Elite Expertise, we are devoted to serving ambitious pharmacists who direct this journey with assurance. Enrol with us today! And get closer to your dream of becoming a pharmacist in Australia!
