Rural and remote nursing pay rates

Rural and remote nursing pay rates

July 28, 2023

For those seeking travel nursing and rural and remote roles who may not be familiar with the Monash Modified Model (MMM) and its impact on rates of pay …

The Department of Health (and all State & Territory Heath Departments and health districts), and in turn. all healthcare employment and recruitment departments and medical and nursing agencies, rely on the Monash Modified Model (MMM), which classifies healthcare locations based on how remote they are and their population size.

The model uses a scale from 1 to 7 to determine this.

The reason for sharing is that this has a direct impact on the rates offered for a role.

When nurses ask ‘What is the rate for a contract’  or state ‘I won’t get out of bed unless I’m oaid $XX per hour’, the Monash Modified Model (MMM) classification should be considered when thinking about rates of pay (along with a bunch of other things …)

The MMM category of a healthcare facility affects:

  • the type of nurse needed for that location
  • the qualifications needed for a nurse to work there
  • the number of years of experience needed for the nurse
  • the rate of pay being offered
  • any incentives being offered
  • any benefits being offered
  • any bonuses being offered
  • any transport on offer
  • any accommodation being offered
  • the loading and penalties on offer
  • and probably a bunch of other things we’ve missed 🙂

Generally, the more remote the location, the more experience and qualifications are required, and the higher the rate of pay will be.

Here are the different MMM categories and what they mean:

MM 1 – Metropolitan areas: These are major cities and account for 70% of Australia’s population. Examples include places like St. George Hospital in Sydney.

MM 2 – Regional centres: These areas are in or within a 20km drive of a town with over 50,000 residents. They are considered to be in regional locations.

MM 3 – Large rural towns: These areas are in or within a 15km drive of a town with a population between 15,000 to 50,000 residents. They are also considered to be in regional locations.

MM 4 – Medium rural towns: These areas are in or within a 10km drive of a town with a population between 5,000 to 15,000 residents. They are still considered to be in regional locations.

MM 5 – Small rural towns: This category includes all remaining areas in regional locations.

MM 6 – Remote communities: These are areas in remote mainland regions and remote islands within 5 kilometers offshore.

MM 7 – Very remote communities: This category includes the most remote areas in the country.

uPaged is just about to release a list of ALL CONTRACTS currently available on the platform, and you will see hourly rates ranges listed alongside the contracts.and the MMM location.

Please note: we do not determine the rates offered for these contracts.The healthcare facility does, based on the factors noted above.

Read more here about how to get a job in rural and remote nursing, or how to get a job as a travel nurse in Australia.

Learn more here about nursing agencies in Australia and what to ask before you sign a rural and remote nursing contract

This article here will help with information about nursing agency pay rates

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