The Networks of Care team give evidence to Migration Inquiry

On 19 May, 2026, Leah Williams Veazey and Sasha Block gave evidence at the Joint Standing Committee on Migration's Inquiry into the value of skilled migration to Australia.

Sasha and Leah outside the Inquiry hearing in the NSW Parliament building.

Based on our research with internationally qualified health professionals and industry experts, we noted the valuable contributions made by migrant healthcare workers to our communities and the many barriers they face along their journey to practice their profession and build a life in Australia.

Our research demonstrates that skilled migration is not simply an economic process. It is also a relational and settlement process. Healthcare workers do not arrive as isolated units of labour to plug gaps in our healthcare services (although they do that too, with skill and expertise). They arrive as members of families, with connections to communities both here and overseas. They have professional aspirations and career goals, and a desire to build a full life for themselves and their families.

Internationally qualified health professionals have answered our call. They staff our hospitals, clinics and aged care facilities. They enhance the liveability of the regional areas where they live and work, and contribute professional expertise and intercultural capability. Migration systems succeed when people are able to build lives, not just fill vacancies. Settlement support and investment in communities are a vital part of the social and relational infrastructure that supports productivity, enhances workforce sustainability, regional retention and social cohesion.