Between 2013 and 2023 (Figure 3):
- The number of palliative medicine physicians almost doubled from 183 to 358 (5.2% annually), outpacing the rise for all specialist medical practitioners (4.7% annually). The number of palliative care nurses increased from 3,300 to 3,900 (1.9% annually), slightly slower than that for all employed nurses and midwives (2.9% annually).
- Annual growth in total FTE rates per 100,000 population was higher for palliative medicine physicians (5.0% annually, increasing from 0.8 to 1.3 FTE) compared to all specialist medical practitioners (2.6% increase annually). In contrast, palliative care nurses saw a modest increase of 0.8% annually in the FTE rate (from 12 to 13 per 100,000), which was slower than the 1.5% annual increase for all nurses and midwives.
- The proportion of palliative medicine physicians who were male has decreased slightly (from 42% to 36%), indicating a gradual shift in gender representation. In contrast, the proportion of male palliative care nurses has remained consistently low at just 10%. These trends are also reflected among all employed specialist medical practitioners and all employed nurses and midwives.
