The supply of nurses in Australia increased by 6.2% between 2005 and 2009, from 1,040 full time equivalent (FTE) nurses per 100,000 population to 1,105 FTE nurses based on a 38-hour week.

This was mainly a result of both a 13.3% increase in the number of employed nurses, and a 0.9% increase in the average hours they worked over this period. Nursing continued to be a female dominated profession, with females comprising 90.4% of employed nurses in 2009 (down slightly from 92.1% in 2005).

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