A one stop guide to Advanced Paediatric training in Victoria

NICU - Royal Children's Hospital - Newborn Intensive Care Unit

Trainee Positions

  • Both Fellow and Specialist Neonatal Medical Officer (Registrar/SHMO) positions are available - please note that Fellow roles are directly recruited via RCH Careers page for 2024 positions.  The Registrar (Specialist Neonatal Medical Officer) roles are recruited via this process/site (VPAT)
    • Commencing 5th February or 5th August 2024
    • Applications for 2025 and beyond will also be considered
    • 6 month or 12 month roles available
    • Part-time (generally 0.5 EFT) will be considered

Trainee Level

  • Fellow positions are designed for senior trainees pursuing a career in Neonatology - do not apply for these on this site for 2024 roles - please contact the nominated people below
    • 12 months tertiary neonatal experience is required
    • Advanced trainees (post FRACP exam; or equivalent for IMG's) are preferred
  • Specialist Neonatal Medical Officer (Registrar or SHMO) positions are suitable for trainees in Neonatology, General Paediatrics, or other Paediatric subspecialties who wish to gain tertiary neonatal experience
    • 6 months tertiary neonatal experience is required, but consideration will be give to other acute care experience (e.g. PICU)
    • Trainees may be pre- or post-exam (or equivalent for IMG's)

Contact

For further information regarding the Unit and both roles, including detailed job descriptions, please contact:

  • Dr Sophie Newman  sophie.newman@rch.org.au
  • Dr Cam Smirk   cam.smirk@rch.org.au

Roster and on-call

  • 38 clinical and 5 teaching hours per week on average
  • Shift roster providing 24/7 coverage of the NICU:  short day, long day, evening, night shifts
  • No clinical on-call.  There is an on-call system to cover sick leave known in advance

Senior Staff

  • 12 Consultant Neonatologists (full-time and part-time) available on-site or on-call 24/7

Education and Research

  • There are many formal and informal education opportunities, both within the NICU Education Programme (which provides 5-6 scheduled teaching activities a week), the RCH and other external sites.
  • Opportunities to participate in new or ongoing research as well as quality audits and guideline development are also available and encouraged.

Pay

  • As per the award

    The Royal Children's Hospital Newborn Intensive Care Unit (NICU) 

    The RCH is the largest paediatric tertiary referral centre in the state of Victoria.  The NICU has a capacity of 35 cots (20-22 intensive care, 13-15 high dependency), and receives approximately 600-700 admissions per year.

    Infants with a wide range of complex medical and surgical conditions are managed in the NICU.  However, the Unit is particularly well recognised for its expertise in the management of infants with severe respiratory failure complicated by pulmonary hypertension, complex congenital malformations, airway obstruction, and a wide range of surgical conditions, particularly congenital diaphragmatic hernia and oesophageal atresia.

    The RCH NICU collaborates extensively with the many sub-specialty medical and surgical teams within the RCH.  We have relationships with both the University of Melbourne and the MCRI and, as such, can provide both education and research opportunities for our medical staff.

    The RCH NICU is approved for up to 18 months advanced training in Neonatal/Perinatal Medicine by the Royal Australasian College of Physicians.