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Palliative Medicine

RACP (Chapter of Palliative Medicine, AChPM). Specialist care of people with life-limiting illness, deeply meaningful, accessible to enter, in demand everywhere, and open via multiple routes.

Medicine (physician)3 years AT (RACP); shorter clinical diplomas exist for GPsCompetitiveness: accessible
Competition snapshot: Accessible   Accessible, demand for trainees exceeds supply in most networks
Program length
3 years AT (RACP); shorter clinical diplomas exist for GPs
Earliest entry
Post-BPT, or via alternative entry (FRACGP/FACEM/other fellowships recognised for Chapter routes)
Typical entry
PGY5+
Annual intake
≈ 40–70 new trainees/yr (indicative)
Trainees
≈ 250–350
Women (trainees)
≈ 70% of trainees
Registrar pay
$110,000–160,000
Consultant (public)
$270,000–420,000 package
Consultant (private)
$250,000–400,000 (mostly public/consultative; some private hospital work) (indicative)
Hours & lifestyle
Humane: consult services, hospice rounds, community visits; on-call is phone-heavy rather than procedure-heavy

Overview

Palliative medicine specialises in symptom control, communication and whole-person care for people with life-limiting illness, in hospices, hospital consult teams, and patients' homes. It attracts doctors from medicine, general practice, oncology and emergency backgrounds, and offers multiple entry doors: the full RACP Chapter training, or diploma-level credentials for GPs and rural generalists.

It is consistently rated among the most meaningful and least regretted specialty choices, with workforce demand so deep that trained palliative physicians essentially choose their geography.

The pathway

  1. FoundationMost enter after BPT (or with FRACGP/other fellowship via Chapter recognition); check current RACP entry rules for your background.
  2. Advanced training (3 years)Hospice/inpatient units, hospital consult teams, community palliative care, ± paediatric or oncology terms.
  3. FAChPM / FRACP → consultantPublic consultant, hospice, community lead or academic roles; part-time and portfolio careers common.

Formal requirements

  • General registration; entry criteria vary by route (RACP BPT completion for the physician route; recognised fellowship for Chapter routes); verify against current RACP handbooks.
  • Appointment to an accredited palliative medicine training post.

Selection and points

How selection works

ComponentWhat it involves
Training-post applicationService-level CV/referee/interview; genuinely interested applicants are actively courted in most states.

Points & scoring

  • No points matrix; communication skill and vocational clarity carry interviews.
The unofficial view
  • Do a palliative term before committing: the work is beautiful but emotionally specific, and services want evidence you know what you're choosing.
  • GPs: the RACGP/ACRRM diplomas and Chapter routes let you build palliative practice without full retraining.

Competition & demographics

Competitiveness

  • Posts frequently unfilled regionally; metro hospice posts fill but rarely fiercely.

Who's in the program

  • ≈ 70% women; many second-career entrants; average age at entry is among the oldest of any program.

Exams

ExamWhenFormatCostPass rate
RACP Chapter assessments
Check current AChPM handbook for assessment details.		During ATWork-based assessments, case studies, projects (no divisional-style barrier exam for the Chapter)Training fees applyCompletion-based

Fees and pass rates are indicative; check the college's current fee schedule and exam reports.

What training costs

  • RACP training fees ≈ $2,700–3,300/yr; course costs modest compared with procedural colleges.

How to improve your chances at each stage

StageMedical student
  • Take a hospice placement; learn opioid pharmacology properly; it's the specialty's craft foundation.
StageIntern (PGY1)
  • Request a palliative or oncology term; practise family meetings with supervision; the skill compounds.
StageResident (PGY2–3)
  • A palliative SRMO/registrar term converts interest into referees; audit symptom-control outcomes for an easy publication.
StageRegistrar years & applications
  • Choose AT posts across settings (hospice, consults, community); breadth defines consultant employability.
StageIf you don't get on (or change your mind)
  • Adjacent: geriatrics, medical oncology, general medicine, GP with palliative diploma.

See also the general strategy guide: universal CV, referee and interview advice that applies across specialties.

Job market & workforce outlook

Outlook: Strong and growing, ageing population, oncology demand, voluntary assisted dying frameworks increasing consultative need; chronic workforce shortage
  • Every state reports palliative physician shortages, most acutely regional; consult-liaison, hospice, community and VAD-adjacent roles all expanding.

Income

  • Public packages $270,000–420,000; portfolio careers (public + hospice + academic) are the norm rather than private billing models.

Pre-tax, indicative, and highly variable with hours, setting and billing model. ATO figures are averages of taxable income by reported occupation.

International medical graduates

  • RACP SIMG assessment; not on the expedited pathway list (early 2026).

Full IMG pathways guide →

Community: questions and perspectives

CommunityAsk questions and share real-world experience below. Sign in with your email (button top right) to post. Your training stage and specialty interest appear beside your name so readers know the perspective, and the best posts are folded into the page at each annual review.

❓ Questions & answers

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🩺 Experiences, corrections & perspectives

If you've trained in palliative medicine, or tried to, share what the page can't capture: what it's really like, what's changed, what you wish you'd known.

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Last reviewed July 2026. Details marked “verified” were checked against official/current sources at review; unmarked figures are indicative estimates from training data, college publications and community knowledge. Selection regulations change annually, always read the current-year official documents before acting.
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