Cardiac Surgery Fellow

The Hospital:

The Royal Children’s Hospital’s (RCH) Vision is “A world where all kids thrive”.

RCH is a cornerstone member of the Melbourne Children’s Campus, partnering with Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, The University of Melbourne Department of Paediatrics and The Royal Children’s Hospital Foundation.

RCH has cared for the children and young people of Victoria for more than 150 years since it was founded in 1870. A full range of paediatrics and adolescent health services are provided plus tertiary and quaternary care for the most critically ill and medically complex patients in Victoria, Tasmania, southern NSW and other states around Australia and overseas. The Hospital has more than 6,000 staff, a budget of $850M, 12 wards and 350 beds. Annually, the RCH has 300,000+ Specialist Clinic appointments, 90,000+ Emergency Department presentations and 20,000 elective surgeries.

The RCH is committed to the Child Safe Standards. 

RCH enjoys high employee engagement and is committed to staff safety and a positive culture through enactment of our Compact.

For further Information on RCH is available here.

The Department:
The Cardiac Surgery Department at the RCH is the sole provider of care for paediatric cardiac surgery for Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia and Northern Territory. The Cardiac Surgery Department performs over 530 open heart surgeries a year. It holds the Nationally Funded Centre for paediatric cardiac transplantation and this includes a large program for LVAD and ECMO. 

The Cardiac Surgery Department is one of the leading units in the world in its speciality with emphasis on clinical and technical excellence, clinical and experimental research and teaching of younger generations of surgeons.

The Role:
The Cardiac Surgery Unit at the Royal Children’s Hospital is offering a full time Fellow position for 12 months.
 
Selection Criteria:
The candidate must have completed basic surgical training, general cardiac surgery training and have relatively important experience at registrar level of paediatric cardiac surgery in a reputable unit.    

The successful candidate will be part of our cardiac medical team and first assistant surgeon for four senior full-time consultants.  The candidate will perform surgery as main operator under direct supervision from one of the four surgeons, assist the ward and intensive care unit in the management of paediatric cardiac surgery patients. The candidate will be on-call one in three and be responsible for the collection of clinical data and the preparation of weekly and monthly Mortality and Morbidity meeting.  The successful candidate is expected to participate to clinical research and to be first author for at least one paper during their Fellowship. The candidate will need to provide ethical decision making in achievements of organisational goals.  Comply with and utilize procedures, policies, regulations & standards of the Royal Children’s Hospital.

The successful candidate must be technically facile in the skills of adult cardiac surgery.  Some experience as first operator in paediatric cardiac surgery is valued.  The candidate will be in continuous contact with consultant surgeons, theatre nurses, ICU personnel medical and nursing, ward doctors and nurses, administrative staff, Cardiology staff, medical senior and junior.  

Our fellow positions are highly competitive. We usually select surgeons who have some experience in Paediatric Cardiac Surgery with a history of handling neonatal patients and who are planning on a career primarily in paediatric cardiac surgery.

Please click here to view the position description.

The Medical Board of Australia (AHPRA) requires all applicants who apply for initial registration demonstrate English language skills to be suitable for registration.  All International Medial Graduates must provide an English Test Report from either IELTS, OET, PTE Academic or TOEFL.

See link for specific AHPRA requirements: https://www.ahpra.gov.au/Registration/Registration-Standards/English-language-skills/FAQ.aspx 

What we offer:

• Salary Packaging – Increase your take home pay!

• Employee Assistance Program
• Discounted on-site car parking

Other requirements:

• Current National Criminal Record Check, or willing to obtain
• Valid Working with Children Check
• Current NDIS Worker Screening Check, or willing to obtain
• Compliance with RCHs “Staff Immunisation - Prevention of Vaccine Preventable Diseases” procedure
• All International Medical Graduate applicants will need to meet the AHPRA

Application process

To apply, you will need a resume and a tailored cover letter outlining your skills, experience, and suitability for the position in line with the requirements of the position description.

Shortlisting for this position will commence immediately, we encourage you to apply promptly!

For more information about this position please contact diana.josevska@rch.org.au 

Why work at the RCH?

RCH enjoys high employee engagement and is committed to staff safety and a positive culture through enactment of our Compact. We offer the opportunity to work in world-class facilities, surrounded by Royal Park and only a short tram trip from the heart of Melbourne city.

We also offer staff benefits such as discounted staff parking, salary packaging, and an award-winning health and wellbeing program.

The RCH is committed to a diverse and inclusive workforce. We encourage applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, people from culturally and/or linguistically diverse background, all members of the LGBTQI community and people with disability.

It is a requirement of your employment that you be vaccinated against Influenza annually for Category A and B roles, in compliance with any public health orders in place at the relevant time, unless you have a medical exception in line with those public health orders, which has been accepted by The Royal Children’s Hospital.  Applicants will be required to provide their Australian Government Immunisation History Statement, it is a requirement of the RCH to collect, record and hold vaccination information.

It is also a requirement of your employment that you comply with any direction given by The Royal Children’s Hospital that you be vaccinated against, or prove immunity to, any other disease, unless you have a relevant exemption, and offers of employment are conditional on successful completion of background checks including reference checks. 

Are you ready to join our team?

Apply online by clicking on the “Apply” button

Applications close Wednesday 2nd September 2026