Chinese Medicine Practitioners

ANZSCO ID 252214

Overview

Snapshot

Employed
1,000
Future Growth
N/A
Weekly Earnings
N/A
Full-Time Share
51%
Female Share
53%
Average age
49

Summary

Chinese Medicine Practitioners treat imbalances of energy flows through the body by assessing the whole person and using techniques and methods such as acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine, massage, diet, exercise and breathing therapy.

Also known as: Oriental Medicine Practitioner.

Specialisations: Chinese Herbalist.

A bachelor degree in traditional Chinese medicine or health science majoring in traditional Chinese medicine is usually needed to work as a Chinese Medicine Practitioner.

Tasks

  • Assesses patients to determine the nature of the disorder, illness, problem or need by questioning, examining and observing.

  • Develops and implements treatment plans using techniques and methods such as acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine, massage, diet, exercise and breathing therapy.

  • Evaluates and documents patients' progress through treatment plans.

  • Provides dietary and lifestyle advice and guidelines.

  • Prescribes natural medicines, such as herbal, mineral and animal extracts, to stimulate the body's capacity for self-healing.

Characteristics

Job Type
Professionals
Skill Level
Very high skill
ANZSCO Occupation group
Unemployment Rate
n/a
Industries
Pathway(s)
  • University
Interests
  • Analytical
  • Creative
  • Helping
Physical Demand
  • Sedentary
  • Light

Outlook

Employment Outlook

JSA produces employment projections to show where likely future job opportunities may be. Employment projections data are only produced for occupations at the broad four digit Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO) level. While data are not available for this occupation, projections data are available for the parent occupation, Complementary Health Therapists, under the outlook section.


Earnings and hours

Working arrangements

  • Around 51% of people employed as Chinese Medicine Practitioners work full-time hours, in all their jobs combined. This is 15 percentage points below the all jobs average (66%).

    Full-time workers work an average of 43 hours per week in their main job. This is similar to the all jobs average (44 hours per week).

    Sources:Full-time share and full-time hours: ABS, 2016 Census, customised report. Compared to the all jobs average.


Industries

Main industries

1
Health Care and Social Assistance
94.7%
2
Retail Trade
1.1%
3
Wholesale Trade
0.6%
4
Education and Training
0.5%
5
Other industries
0.8%

Regions

Employment across Australia

NSW

40.4% All occupations: 31.6%

VIC

38.5% All occupations: 25.6%

QLD

9.1% All occupations: 20.0%

SA

2.7% All occupations: 7.0%

WA

6.8% All occupations: 10.8%

TAS

0.8% All occupations: 2.0%

NT

0.0% All occupations: 1.0%

ACT

1.7% All occupations: 1.9%

Employment by State and Territory (% Share)

State Chinese Medicine Practitioners All Jobs Average
NSW 40.4 31.6
VIC 38.5 25.6
QLD 9.1 20.0
SA 2.7 7.0
WA 6.8 10.8
TAS 0.8 2.0
NT 0.0 1.0
ACT 1.7 1.9


  • Around 84% of Chinese Medicine Practitioners live in capital cities, compared with the all jobs average of 62%.

    Victoria and New South Wales have a large share of employment relative to their population size.

    The regions with the largest share of workers are:

    Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Share of workers across Australian states, territories and regions, in this job compared to the all jobs average.


Worker profile

Age and gender

Age In Years
49
All Jobs Average is 40
Female Share
53%
All Jobs Average is 48%
  • The median age of Chinese Medicine Practitioners is 49 years. This is higher than the all jobs average of 40 years.

    A large share of workers are aged 45 to 54 years.

    Females make up 53% of the workforce. This is 5 percentage points above the all jobs average of 48%.

    Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile and gender share compared to the all jobs average.

Age Profile (% Share)

Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.
Age Bracket Chinese Medicine Practitioners All Jobs Average
15-19 0.0 5.0
20-24 1.0 9.3
25-34 12.4 22.9
35-44 25.0 22.0
45-54 26.5 21.6
55-59 13.9 9.0
60-64 12.3 6.0
65 and Over 9.0 4.2
Median Age 49 40

Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.


Employment Pathways

Education, training and experience

A bachelor degree in traditional Chinese medicine or health science majoring in traditional Chinese medicine is usually needed to work as a Chinese Medicine Practitioner.

Visit

  • Course Seeker to search and compare higher education courses.
  • ComparED to compare undergraduate and postgraduate student experiences and outcomes.
  • My Skills to compare Vocational Education and Training (VET) courses, providers and student outcomes.
  • AAPathways website to explore Health Industry VET training pathways.

Highest Level of Education (% Share)

Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.
Type of Qualification Chinese Medicine Practitioners All Jobs Average
Post Graduate/Graduate Diploma or Graduate Certificate 23.7 10.1
Bachelor degree 61.8 21.8
Advanced Diploma/Diploma 10.6 11.6
Certificate III/IV 0.3 21.1
Year 12 2.9 18.1
Year 11 0.0 4.8
Year 10 and below 0.6 12.5

Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.


Skills and Knowledge

Employers look for Complementary Health Therapists who are caring and empathetic and can work well in a team, with the ability to communicate with a diverse range of people.

Skills

Skills can be improved through training or experience.

  • 73%

    Reading comprehension

    Reading work related information.

  • 68%

    Social perceptiveness

    Understanding why people react the way they do.

  • 64%

    Active listening

    Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

  • 63%

    Active learning

    Being able to use what you have learnt to solve problems now and again in the future.

  • 63%

    Critical thinking

    Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

  • 61%

    Judgment and decision making

    Figuring out the pros and cons of different options and choosing the best one.

  • 59%

    Serving others

    Looking for ways to help people.

  • 59%

    Speaking

    Talking to others.

  • 59%

    Writing

    Writing things for co-workers or customers.

  • 57%

    Monitoring

    Keeping track of how well work is progressing so you can make changes or improvements.

  • 55%

    Complex problem solving

    Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

  • 54%

    Learning strategies

    Figuring out the best way to teach or learn something new.

  • 52%

    Systems evaluation

    Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.

  • 52%

    Persuasion

    Talking people into changing their minds or their behaviour.

  • 50%

    Coordination with others

    Being adaptable and coordinating work with other people.

  • 46%

    Science

    Using scientific rules and methods to solve problems.

  • 46%

    Instructing

    Teaching people how to do something.

  • 46%

    Systems analysis

    Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect it.

  • 43%

    Management of personnel resources

    Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, and choosing the best people for the job.

  • 43%

    Time management

    Managing your own and other peoples' time to get work done.


Knowledge

These are important topics, subjects or knowledge areas.

  • 81%

    Psychology

    Human behaviour; differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; research methods; assessing and treating disorders.

  • 80%

    Medicine and dentistry

    Diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities, including preventive health-care measures.

  • 80%

    Therapy and counselling

    Diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and career counselling and guidance.

  • 71%

    Biology

    Plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, how they rely on and work with each other and the environment.

  • 67%

    Customer and personal service

    Understanding customer needs, providing good quality service, and measuring customer satisfaction.

  • 67%

    Clerical

    Word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office work.

  • 59%

    English language

    English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

  • 59%

    Administration and management

    Business principles involved in strategic planning, leadership, and coordinating people and resources.

  • 56%

    Chemistry

    Chemical composition, structure, and properties. How chemicals are made, used, mixed, and can change.

  • 53%

    Sales and marketing

    Showing, promoting, and selling including marketing strategy, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.

  • 53%

    Sociology and anthropology

    Group behaviour and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures and their history and origins.

  • 52%

    Computers and electronics

    Circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

  • 50%

    Education and training

    Curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

  • 49%

    Philosophy and theology

    Philosophical systems and religions, including their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and impact on society.

  • 47%

    Personnel and human resources

    Recruiting and training people, managing pay and other entitlements (like sick leave), and negotiating pay and conditions.

  • 42%

    Mathematics

    Arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, or statistics.

  • 38%

    Law and government

    How our laws and courts work. Government rules and regulations, and the political system.

  • 37%

    Economics and accounting

    Economics and accounting, the financial markets, banking and checking and reporting of financial data.

  • 34%

    Communications and media

    Media production, communication, and dissemination. Includes written, spoken, and visual media.

  • 27%

    Public safety and security

    Use of equipment, rules and ideas to protect people, data, property, and institutions.


Abilities

Workers use these physical and mental abilities..

  • 75%

    Inductive reasoning

    Use lots of detailed information to come up with answers or make general rules.

  • 75%

    Problem spotting

    Notice when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong, even if you can't solve the problem.

  • 71%

    Oral comprehension

    Listen to and understand what people say.

  • 71%

    Oral expression

    Communicate by speaking.

  • 70%

    Deductive reasoning

    Use general rules to find answers or solve problems logically.

  • 70%

    Written comprehension

    Read and understand written information.

  • 59%

    Near vision

    See details that are up-close (within a few feet).

  • 59%

    Written expression

    Write in a way that people can understand.

  • 57%

    Sorting or ordering

    Order or arrange things in a pattern or sequence (e.g., numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).

  • 57%

    Categorising

    Come up with different ways of grouping things.

  • 57%

    Flexibility of closure

    See a pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) hidden in other distracting material.

  • 55%

    Speech clarity

    Speak clearly so others can understand you.

  • 55%

    Speech recognition

    Identify and understand the speech of another person.

  • 55%

    Brainstorming

    Come up with a number of ideas about a topic, even if the ideas aren't very good.

  • 50%

    Originality

    Come up with unusual or clever ideas, or creative ways to solve a problem.

  • 45%

    Speed of recognition

    Quickly make sense of and organize things you can see like letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.

  • 43%

    Far vision

    See details that are far away.

  • 43%

    Perceptual speed

    Use your eyes to quickly compare groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.

  • 43%

    Selective attention

    Pay attention to something without being distracted.

  • 41%

    Multitasking

    Do two or more things at the same time.


Activities

These are kinds of activities workers regularly do in this job.

  • 84%

    Researching and investigating

    Looking for, getting and understanding different kinds of information.

  • 81%

    Helping and caring for others

    Providing personal assistance, medical attention, or emotional support.

  • 78%

    Keeping your knowledge up-to-date

    Keeping up-to-date with technology and new ideas.

  • 76%

    Making decisions and solving problems

    Using information to work out the best solution and solve problems.

  • 76%

    Looking for changes over time

    Comparing objects, actions, or events. Looking for differences between them or changes over time.

  • 76%

    Building good relationships

    Building good working relationships and keeping them over time.

  • 67%

    Making sense of information and ideas

    Looking at, working with, and understanding data or information.

  • 67%

    Thinking creatively

    Using your own ideas for developing, designing, or creating something new.

  • 65%

    Collecting and organising information

    Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or checking information or data.

  • 65%

    Monitoring people, processes and things

    Checking objects, actions, or events, and keeping an eye out for problems.

  • 62%

    Communicating with the public

    Giving information to the public, business or government by telephone, in writing, or in person.

  • 61%

    Coaching and developing others

    Working out the needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or helping them to improve.

  • 61%

    Explaining things to people

    Helping people to understand and use information.

  • 61%

    Documenting or recording information

    Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.

  • 58%

    Working with the public

    Greeting or serving customers, clients or guests, and public speaking or performing.

  • 57%

    Influencing people

    Convincing people to buy something or to change their minds or actions.

  • 56%

    Giving expert advice

    Providing guidance and expert advice to management or other groups.

  • 52%

    Communicating within a team

    Giving information to co-workers by telephone, in writing, or in person.

  • 52%

    Checking compliance with standards

    Deciding whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.

  • 46%

    Working with computers

    Using computers to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.


Interests and demands

Learn about the daily activities, and physical and social demands faced by workers. Explore the values and work styles that workers rate as most important.

Interests

Interests are the style or type of work we prefer to do. All interest areas are shown below.

  • 95%

    Analytical

    Ideas and thinking. Searching for facts and figuring out problems in your head.

  • 90%

    Helping

    Working with people. Helping or providing service to others.

  • 57%

    Creative

    Working with forms, designs and patterns. Often need self-expression and can be done without following rules.

  • 48%

    Practical

    Practical, hands-on work. Often with plants and animals, or materials like wood, tools, and machinery.

  • 24%

    Administrative

    Following set procedures and routines. Working with numbers and details more than with ideas, usually following rules.

  • 24%

    Enterprising

    Starting up and carrying out projects. Leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes require risk taking and often deal with business.


Values

Work values are important to a person’s feeling of satisfaction. All six values are shown below.
  • 90%

    Relationships

    Serve and work with others. Workers usually get along well with each other, do things to help other people, and are rarely pressured to do things that go against their sense of right and wrong.

  • 81%

    Achievement

    Results oriented. Workers are able to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment.

  • 81%

    Independence

    Work alone and make decisions. Workers are able to try out their own ideas, make decisions on their own, and work with little or no supervision.

  • 74%

    Working conditions

    Job security and good working conditions. There is usually a steady flow of interesting work, and the pay and conditions are generally good.

  • 71%

    Support

    Supportive management that stands behind employees. Workers are treated fairly by their company, they are supported by management, and have supervisors who train them well.

  • 67%

    Recognition

    Advancement and the potential to lead. Workers are recognised for the work that they do, they may give directions and instructions to others, and they are looked up to in their company and their community.


Demands

The physical and social demands that workers face most often are shown below:
  • 99%

    Contact with people

    Have contact with people by telephone, face-to-face, or any other way.

  • 98%

    Face-to-face discussions

    Talk with people face-to-face.

  • 98%

    Telephone

    Talk on the telephone.

  • 96%

    Frequent decision making

    Frequently make decisions that impact other people.

  • 94%

    Electronic mail

    Use electronic mail.

  • 94%

    Freedom to make decisions

    Have freedom to make decision on your own.

  • 93%

    Unstructured work

    Have freedom to decide on tasks, priorities, and goals.

  • 92%

    Disease or infection

    Be exposed to disease or infections.

  • 90%

    Physically close to people

    Work physically close to other people.

  • 85%

    Impact of decisions

    Make decisions that have a large impact on other people.

  • 85%

    Indoors, heat controlled

    Work indoors with access to heating or cooling.

  • 84%

    Letters and memos

    Write letters and memos.

  • 83%

    Contact with the public

    Work with customers or the public.

  • 82%

    Being exact or accurate

    Be very exact or highly accurate.

  • 82%

    Spend time sitting

    Spend time sitting at work.

  • 79%

    Consequence of error

    Work where mistakes have serious consequences.

  • 71%

    Wear common protective or safety equipment

    Wear equipment like safety shoes, glasses, gloves, hard hats or life jackets.

  • 67%

    Teamwork

    Work with people in a group or team.

  • 59%

    Health and safety of others

    Take responsibility for the health and safety of others.

  • 59%

    Time pressure

    Work to strict deadlines.

Occupational Information Network
O*NET is a trademark of the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration.
The skills and importance ratings on this page are derived from the US Department of Labor O*NET Database Version 21.2, 29-1199.04 - Naturopathic Physicians.


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