Nurses and midwives in Australia
Australia: Nurses and midwives was 13.45 per 1,000 people in 2022. ▲ Rising
Nurses and midwives in Australia, 1990–2022
Source: Global Health Workforce Statistics, World Health Organization (WHO). Measured in per 1,000 people.
Analysis
In 2022, nurses and midwives in Australia stood at 13.45 per 1,000 people.
The figure is down 0.9% on the previous year and up 32.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, nurses and midwives in Australia peaked at 13.57 per 1,000 people in 2021 and was at its lowest, 9.71 per 1,000 people, in 2005.
That places Australia 8th out of 188 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 32 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 11.05 per 1,000 people | 10.12 per 1,000 people | 12.03 per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 2000s | 10.14 per 1,000 people | 9.71 per 1,000 people | 10.73 per 1,000 people | 9 |
| 2010s | 11.84 per 1,000 people | 10.17 per 1,000 people | 13.1 per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 2020s | 13.39 per 1,000 people | 13.16 per 1,000 people | 13.57 per 1,000 people | 3 |
Countries ranked near Australia
More health data for Australia
- Population ages 15-64, total 17.74 million (2025)
- Population ages 65 and above, male 17.0% (2025)
- Population ages 65 and above, total 5.00 million (2025)
- Population ages 65 and above 18.1% (2025)
- Age population, age 14, male, interpolated 169,722 (2025)
- Age population, age 14, female, interpolated 161,096 (2025)
- Age population, age 13, male, interpolated 169,878 (2025)
- Age population, age 12, male, interpolated 170,044 (2025)
- Age population, age 11, male, interpolated 168,944 (2025)
- Age population, age 12, female, interpolated 160,792 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is nurses and midwives in Australia?
- Nurses and midwives in Australia was 13.45 per 1,000 people in 2022, according to Global Health Workforce Statistics, World Health Organization (WHO).
- What is the highest nurses and midwives recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 13.57 per 1,000 people in 2021.
- What is the lowest nurses and midwives recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.71 per 1,000 people in 2005.
- How does Australia rank for nurses and midwives?
- Australia ranks 8th out of 188 countries with data for 2022.
- Is nurses and midwives rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 32.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from Global Health Workforce Statistics, World Health Organization (WHO), published as part of Nurses and midwives (per 1,000 people). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 32 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Nurses and midwives include professional nurses, professional midwives, auxiliary nurses, auxiliary midwives, enrolled nurses, enrolled midwives and other associated personnel, such as dental nurses and primary care nurses.