Occupational Therapists In Melbourne??

Question

Hey there. I'm moving to Melbourne in about a year. I'm an OT in the States and was wondering if anyone knew if OT was very different down under. I just know it's more of a socialized health care and I'm wondering what to expect. Also, does anyone know how the pay is there for Occupational Therapists... we do pretty well here so I wasn't sure what to expect. The OT job searches in Australia don't list income.

Answer 1

Hi and welcome to Melbourne =]

What to expect:

Occupational therapists work with the disabled, the elderly, newborns, school-aged children, and anyone who has a permanent or temporary impairment in their physical or mental functioning. The purpose is to help patients perform daily tasks in their living and working environments.

Here is the salary:

http://content.mycareer.com.au/salary-ce...

Have a look at it and hopefully it's helpful.

The range of averages for America, by State, is $41,000 to $66,000...

Answer 2

Occupational Therapy is not covered under Australia's Medicare system. A fairly significant percentage of people have private health insurance in addition to their Medicare cover and that usually offers rebates for OT, but many people have no cover at all.

I've seen OT jobs advertised for between $33 and $45 per hour and salaries from $65k up to $80k, but salaries are very dependent on experience and specific expertise.