SOME 800 Sarawakian nurses and paramedics working in government hospitals in other states want to return to serve in Sarawak government hospitals, said Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Dr Sim Kui Hian.
They have officially sought permission from the Federal Health Ministry to transfer them back to work in Sarawak, he said today.
"The Sarawak Ministry of Public Health is requesting the Federal Health Ministry to facilitate the transfer of these 800 plus Sarawakians who want to come back to work in Sarawak. They are nurses and paramedics attached to government hospitals in the other states.
"We in Sarawak have immediate vacancies for them in our government hospitals. We are currently very short of nurses and paramedics.
“Similarly, the state is also facing a serious shortage of doctors and medical specialists," Dr Sim said at an event held at the Batu Kawa health clinic today.
Dr Sim, who is State Minister for Public Health, Local Government and Housing, said: "We, in Sarawak, who are already facing serious shortage of doctors and specialists, and now another 240 plus have left for peninsula Malaysia since early January.
"We (state government) have requested urgent attention from the federal Health Ministry. The federal ministry had responded by offering 200 immediate postings to Sarawak for doctors and specialists who said were willing to come to Sarawak. However, only 20 took up the offer.
"This miniscule number cannot overcome the severe shortage, he said at the Sarawak United Peoples Party post-Chinese New Year gathering in Sibu.
Long queues in government hospitals now have led many people to seek treatment at private hospitals and private clinics where costs are high and ever escalating, Dr Sim said.
Dr Sim said Sarawak will have to come up with a comprehensive plan on how to overcome these issues to address the shortages.
Now, Sarawak is too heavily dependent on non-Sarawakian doctors as there are insufficient trained local Sarawakians serrving in crucial health and medical services sectors.
This situation is prevalent in all urban and rural districts across the state, involving both the government hospitals and government clinics as well as private ones, Dr Sim added.
"In Sarawak, based on latest statistics, there are 4,000 doctors serving in the government hospitals and government clinics and 659 doctors in private hospitals and clinics. Out of these, the majority of them are non-Sarawakians.
And, this has happened across government hospitals and clinics under the Ministry of Health and those run by private sector.
"It is crucial that we find a way to train more Sarawakians to become doctors as there is a dire need in this field. His ministry is trying to find ways to get more Sarawakians to go for medical courses." he said. – March 7, 2025
