Health care - Regions β€” Practising nurses in Australia

Australia: Health care - Regions β€” Practising nurses was 12.77 Per 1 000 inhabitants in 2021. β–² Rising

Latest (2021)
12.77 Per 1 000 inhabitants
Change on year
up 4.8%
World rank
5th
of 25 countries
All-time high
12.77 Per 1 000 inhabitants
in 2021
All-time low
11.11 Per 1 000 inhabitants
in 2014
Years of data
9
2013–2021

Health care - Regions β€” Practising nurses in Australia, 2013–2021

0510152013201720212013: 11.1 Per 1 000 inhabitants2014: 11.1 Per 1 000 inhabitants2015: 11.3 Per 1 000 inhabitants2016: 11.5 Per 1 000 inhabitants2017: 11.6 Per 1 000 inhabitants2018: 11.8 Per 1 000 inhabitants2019: 12.1 Per 1 000 inhabitants2020: 12.2 Per 1 000 inhabitants2021: 12.8 Per 1 000 inhabitants

Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Per 1 000 inhabitants.

Analysis

In 2021, health care - regions β€” practising nurses in Australia stood at 12.77 Per 1 000 inhabitants. That is the highest value across all 9 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 4.8% on the previous year and up 14.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, health care - regions β€” practising nurses in Australia peaked at 12.77 Per 1 000 inhabitants in 2021 and was at its lowest, 11.11 Per 1 000 inhabitants, in 2014.

Australia ranks 5th of 25 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 11.51 Per 1 000 inhabitants 11.11 Per 1 000 inhabitants 12.14 Per 1 000 inhabitants 7
2020s 12.47 Per 1 000 inhabitants 12.18 Per 1 000 inhabitants 12.77 Per 1 000 inhabitants 2

Countries ranked near Australia

  1. 2 Norway 15.24 Per 1 000 inhabitants compare
  2. 3 Ireland 14.17 Per 1 000 inhabitants
  3. 4 Denmark 12.86 Per 1 000 inhabitants compare
  4. 6 Japan 12.56 Per 1 000 inhabitants compare
  5. 7 Belgium 11.42 Per 1 000 inhabitants compare
  6. 8 Sweden 11 Per 1 000 inhabitants compare

See the full ranking of 27 places β†’

More health data for Australia

All data for Australia β†’

Frequently asked questions

What is health care - regions β€” practising nurses in Australia?
Health care - regions β€” practising nurses in Australia was 12.77 Per 1 000 inhabitants in 2021, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
What is the highest health care - regions β€” practising nurses recorded in Australia?
The highest recorded value was 12.77 Per 1 000 inhabitants in 2021.
What is the lowest health care - regions β€” practising nurses recorded in Australia?
The lowest recorded value was 11.11 Per 1 000 inhabitants in 2014.
How does Australia rank for health care - regions β€” practising nurses?
Australia ranks 5th out of 25 countries with data for 2021.
Is health care - regions β€” practising nurses rising or falling in Australia?
Over the last ten years it is up 14.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Australia data come from?
The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Health care - Regions β€” Practising nurses. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Health care - Regions β€” Practising nurses in Australia. Statizoid, drawing on Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved 19 August 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/stat/health-care-regions-practising-nurses/australia/

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About this data

Indicator
Health care - Regions β€” Practising nurses
Unit
Per 1 000 inhabitants
Source
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Licence
OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required)
Coverage
27 places, 416 data points, 1996–2025
Last refreshed

<p style="text-align: justify;">This dataset provides indicators on healthcare resources in large regions (TL2), and small regions (TL3) when data is available. Indicators include doctor, practising nurses, hospital beds and hospital discharges.</p> <p><strong>Data definition and source</strong></p> <ul> <li><strong>Doctors</strong> (physicians) are usually generalists who assume responsibility for the provision of continuing care to individuals and families, or specialists such as paediatricians, obstetricians/gynaecologists, psychiatrists, medical specialists and surgical specialists.&nbsp;</li> <li><strong>Practising nurses</strong> provide services directly to patients, it includes: professional nurses, associate professional nurses, foreign nurses licensed to practice and actively practising in the country. It excludes midwives unless they work most of the time as nurses.</li> <li><strong>Hospital beds </strong>are all hospital beds which are regularly maintained and staffed and immediately available for the care of admitted patients. They include beds in all hospitals, including general hospitals, mental health and substance abuse hospitals, and other specialty hospitals; occupied and unoccupied beds.</li> </ul> <p style="padding-left: 40px;">The three indicators above are measured per 1 000 inhabitants.</p> <ul> <li><strong>Hospital discharge</strong> is the formal release of a patient from a hospital, here for all causes of diseases (A00-Z99) and all hospitals. It includes discharges from all hospitals, including general hospitals (HP.1.1), mental health hospitals (HP.1.2), and other specialised hospitals (HP.1.3) ; Deaths in hospital ; Transfers to another hospital ; Discharges of healthy newborns. This indicator is measured per 100 000 inhabitants.</li> </ul> <p>Data is collected from Eurostat (reg_hlth) for EU countries and via delegates of the OECD Working Party on Territorial Indicators (WPTI), as well as from national statistical offices' websites.</p> <p><strong>Definition of regions</strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Regions are subnational units below national boundaries. OECD countries have two regional levels: large regions (territorial level 2 or TL2) and small regions (territorial level 3 or TL3). For more information, see the OECD Territorial grid <a href="https://webfs-cfe.oecd.org/files/.Stat/region/OECD_territorial-grid_TL2024.pdf">(pdf)</a> and the OECD Territorial Correspondence Table <a href="https://webfs-cfe.oecd.org/files/.Stat/region/OECD%20Territorial%20correspondence%20-%20TL2024c.xlsx">(xlsx)</a>.&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Cite this dataset</strong></p> <p>OECD Regions, Cities and Local Areas database&nbsp;<a href="http://oe.cd/geostats">http://oe.cd/geostats</a>.</p> <p><strong>Further information</strong></p> <ul> <li><a href="https://regions-cities-atlas.oecd.org/">OECD Regions and Cities Statistical Atlas</a>&nbsp;</li> <li><a href="https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/oecd-regions-and-cities-at-a-glance-2024_f42db3bf-en.html">OECD Regions and Cities at a Glance</a></li> </ul> <p>For questions and/or comments, please email <a href="mailto:RegionStat@oecd.org">RegionStat@oecd.org</a>.</p>