Orthopaedic Surgeons

ANZSCO ID 253514

Overview

Snapshot

Employed
1,100
Future Growth
N/A
Weekly Earnings
N/A
Full-Time Share
89%
Female Share
8%
Average age
45

Summary

Orthopaedic Surgeons perform surgery to treat muscular and skeletal diseases and injuries.

Specialisations: Laryngologist, Otologist, Rhinologist.

Medical Practitioners need to undertake further training with the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons to become an Orthopaedic Surgeon.

Tasks

  • Examines patients to determine the necessity of operations, estimates and explains risks to patients, and selects the best operational procedures.

  • Reviews reports on patients' general physical condition, reactions to medications and medical histories.

  • Consults with anaesthetists regarding the correct anaesthesia for patients.

  • Performs surgical operations.

  • Examines instruments, equipment, and surgical set-up to ensure that antiseptic and aseptic methods have been followed.

  • Instructs other medical, nursing and associated staff regarding the preparation of patients and instrument and equipment requirements.

  • Prescribes post-operative care, and observes and investigates patients' progress.

  • Maintains records of operations performed.

  • May specialise in particular types of operations.

Characteristics


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, Surgeons, under the outlook section.


Earnings and hours

Working arrangements

  • Around 89% of people employed as Orthopaedic Surgeons work full-time hours, in all their jobs combined. This is 23 percentage points above the all jobs average (66%).

    Full-time workers work an average of 55 hours per week in their main job. This is 11 hours more than 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
96.9%
2
Wholesale Trade
0.7%
3
Public Administration and Safety
0.5%
4
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
0.3%
5
Other industries
0.5%

Regions

Employment across Australia

NSW

31.3% All occupations: 31.6%

VIC

22.2% All occupations: 25.6%

QLD

22.3% All occupations: 20.0%

SA

9.1% All occupations: 7.0%

WA

11.1% All occupations: 10.8%

TAS

1.6% All occupations: 2.0%

NT

0.5% All occupations: 1.0%

ACT

1.8% All occupations: 1.9%

Employment by State and Territory (% Share)

State Orthopaedic Surgeons All Jobs Average
NSW 31.3 31.6
VIC 22.2 25.6
QLD 22.3 20.0
SA 9.1 7.0
WA 11.1 10.8
TAS 1.6 2.0
NT 0.5 1.0
ACT 1.8 1.9



Worker profile

Age and gender

Age In Years
45
All Jobs Average is 40
Female Share
8%
All Jobs Average is 48%
  • The median age of Orthopaedic Surgeons is 45 years. This is higher than the all jobs average of 40 years.

    A large share of workers are aged 35 to 44 years.

    Females make up 8% of the workforce. This is 40 percentage points below 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 Orthopaedic Surgeons All Jobs Average
15-19 0.0 5.0
20-24 0.0 9.3
25-34 15.4 22.9
35-44 33.5 22.0
45-54 25.4 21.6
55-59 9.3 9.0
60-64 6.3 6.0
65 and Over 10.1 4.2
Median Age 45 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

Medical Practitioners need to undertake further training with the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons to become an Orthopaedic Surgeon.

Registration with the Medical Board of Australia is required.

Visit

  • Course Seeker to search and compare higher education courses.
  • ComparED to compare undergraduate and postgraduate student experiences and outcomes.

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 Orthopaedic Surgeons All Jobs Average
Post Graduate/Graduate Diploma or Graduate Certificate 46.1 10.1
Bachelor degree 53.0 21.8
Advanced Diploma/Diploma 0.4 11.6
Certificate III/IV 0.3 21.1
Year 12 0.3 18.1
Year 11 0.0 4.8
Year 10 and below 0.0 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 Surgeons who are caring, compassionate, empathetic and work well in a team.

Skills

Skills can be improved through training or experience.

  • 84%

    Reading comprehension

    Reading work related information.

  • 71%

    Active learning

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

  • 70%

    Active listening

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

  • 70%

    Critical thinking

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

  • 70%

    Judgment and decision making

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

  • 68%

    Complex problem solving

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

  • 68%

    Instructing

    Teaching people how to do something.

  • 66%

    Monitoring

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

  • 66%

    Social perceptiveness

    Understanding why people react the way they do.

  • 64%

    Writing

    Writing things for co-workers or customers.

  • 63%

    Science

    Using scientific rules and methods to solve problems.

  • 61%

    Speaking

    Talking to others.

  • 59%

    Coordination with others

    Being adaptable and coordinating work with other people.

  • 57%

    Learning strategies

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

  • 55%

    Serving others

    Looking for ways to help people.

  • 55%

    Time management

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

  • 52%

    Management of personnel resources

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

  • 50%

    Systems evaluation

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

  • 48%

    Systems analysis

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

  • 46%

    Mathematics

    Using maths to solve problems.


Knowledge

These are important topics, subjects or knowledge areas.

  • 97%

    Medicine and dentistry

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

  • 82%

    Customer and personal service

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

  • 79%

    English language

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

  • 75%

    Education and training

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

  • 73%

    Biology

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

  • 70%

    Psychology

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

  • 70%

    Therapy and counselling

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

  • 58%

    Personnel and human resources

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

  • 56%

    Computers and electronics

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

  • 54%

    Sales and marketing

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

  • 54%

    Mechanical

    Machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.

  • 53%

    Chemistry

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

  • 51%

    Administration and management

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

  • 51%

    Law and government

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

  • 50%

    Engineering and technology

    Use engineering, science and technology to design and produce goods and services.

  • 49%

    Mathematics

    Arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, or statistics.

  • 44%

    Physics

    The physical laws of matter, motion and energy, and how they interact through space and time.

  • 42%

    Communications and media

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

  • 39%

    Public safety and security

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

  • 37%

    Economics and accounting

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


Abilities

Workers use these physical and mental abilities..

  • 91%

    Manual dexterity

    Quickly move your hand to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.

  • 86%

    Problem spotting

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

  • 80%

    Inductive reasoning

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

  • 79%

    Oral comprehension

    Listen to and understand what people say.

  • 75%

    Oral expression

    Communicate by speaking.

  • 73%

    Deductive reasoning

    Use general rules to find answers or solve problems logically.

  • 73%

    Written comprehension

    Read and understand written information.

  • 70%

    Near vision

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

  • 68%

    Finger dexterity

    Put together small parts with your fingers.

  • 68%

    Arm-hand steadiness

    Keep your hand or arm steady.

  • 66%

    Written expression

    Write in a way that people can understand.

  • 64%

    Sorting or ordering

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

  • 61%

    Flexibility of closure

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

  • 61%

    Brainstorming

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

  • 61%

    Categorising

    Come up with different ways of grouping things.

  • 61%

    Visualization

    Imagine how something will look after it is moved around or changed.

  • 59%

    Selective attention

    Pay attention to something without being distracted.

  • 55%

    Speech clarity

    Speak clearly so others can understand you.

  • 55%

    Perceptual speed

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

  • 54%

    Speech recognition

    Identify and understand the speech of another person.


Activities

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

  • 94%

    Helping and caring for others

    Providing personal assistance, medical attention, or emotional support.

  • 93%

    Making decisions and solving problems

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

  • 89%

    Keeping your knowledge up-to-date

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

  • 82%

    Looking for changes over time

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

  • 82%

    Researching and investigating

    Looking for, getting and understanding different kinds of information.

  • 80%

    Collecting and organising information

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

  • 78%

    Making sense of information and ideas

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

  • 77%

    Documenting or recording information

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

  • 77%

    Building good relationships

    Building good working relationships and keeping them over time.

  • 74%

    Monitoring people, processes and things

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

  • 70%

    Giving expert advice

    Providing guidance and expert advice to management or other groups.

  • 70%

    Explaining things to people

    Helping people to understand and use information.

  • 68%

    Training and teaching others

    Understanding the needs of others, developing training programs, and teaching or instructing.

  • 67%

    Working with the public

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

  • 67%

    Thinking creatively

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

  • 66%

    Scheduling work and activities

    Working out the timing of events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.

  • 65%

    Planning and prioritising work

    Deciding on goals and putting together a detailed plan to get the work done.

  • 65%

    Communicating within a team

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

  • 62%

    Assessing and evaluating things

    Working out the value, importance, or quality of things, services or people.

  • 62%

    Checking compliance with standards

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


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.

  • 90%

    Analytical

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

  • 81%

    Practical

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

  • 71%

    Helping

    Working with people. Helping or providing service to others.

  • 43%

    Enterprising

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

  • 38%

    Administrative

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

  • 33%

    Creative

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


Values

Work values are important to a person’s feeling of satisfaction. All six values are shown below.
  • 95%

    Achievement

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

  • 95%

    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.

  • 90%

    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.

  • 88%

    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.

  • 86%

    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%

    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.


Demands

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

    Being exact or accurate

    Be very exact or highly accurate.

  • 98%

    Face-to-face discussions

    Talk with people face-to-face.

  • 98%

    Physically close to people

    Work physically close to other people.

  • 97%

    Telephone

    Talk on the telephone.

  • 97%

    Freedom to make decisions

    Have freedom to make decision on your own.

  • 95%

    Indoors, heat controlled

    Work indoors with access to heating or cooling.

  • 95%

    Contact with people

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

  • 94%

    Teamwork

    Work with people in a group or team.

  • 94%

    Frequent decision making

    Frequently make decisions that impact other people.

  • 94%

    Impact of decisions

    Make decisions that have a large impact on other people.

  • 93%

    Consequence of error

    Work where mistakes have serious consequences.

  • 93%

    Unstructured work

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

  • 90%

    Lead or coordinate a team

    Lead others to do work activities.

  • 89%

    Disease or infection

    Be exposed to disease or infections.

  • 88%

    Responsible for outcomes

    Take responsibility for the results of other people's work.

  • 87%

    Contact with the public

    Work with customers or the public.

  • 86%

    Time pressure

    Work to strict deadlines.

  • 85%

    Using your hands to handle, control, or feel

    Spend time using your hands to handle, control, or feel objects, tools or controls.

  • 84%

    Spend time standing

    Spend time standing at work.

  • 83%

    Competition

    Compete with others, or be aware of competitive pressures.

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, 29-1067.00 - Surgeons.


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