THE Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) wishes to thank the prime minister for his stated commitment to resolving contract doctor issues within three years.
However, the government should set a timeline with milestones to achieve a resolution for the affected doctors. It will take some convincing for the contract doctors to believe that a breakthrough is possible for them to obtain permanent posts.
More resignations can also be expected in the meantime as some contract doctors may not be willing to wait another three years.
But apart from the lack of permanent posts, many other issues are causing frustrations among the public healthcare workforce which the government should focus on resolving now. Some of the issues do not even require financial commitment to resolve such as ensuring more reasonable working hours for a work-life balance, transparency in the selection criteria for permanent posts, and proper career pathways.
The work environment can also be improved by eliminating bullying. As one of the measures, we proposed that department heads at public healthcare facilities should be made responsible for any bullying issues in their department. This was one of the steps proposed by MMA that can be implemented almost immediately.
We understand that securing permanent positions will require a significant, long-term financial commitment from the government. But for now, they could go ahead with easier and more attainable measures.
The issues along with their solutions have been brought up during our town hall session with the health minister, and we are awaiting the ministry’s response. We hope the prime minister was briefed on the issues and solutions proposed by MMA during the session.
MMA wrote to the Prime Minister’s Office to hold a meeting and to brief him first-hand on the issues. Instead, we were referred to the health minister. We appreciate having the opportunity to meet the health minister on several occasions. However, it is important that the prime minister, as the leader of the nation, be made aware of the magnitude of issues in our public healthcare system and its far-reaching impact on the delivery of healthcare for the population. These problems we face are systemic and the result of failed past policies.
As for the 1,500 permanent positions that will be offered this year, it is not any different from the 1,500 permanent positions that were promised by the previous health ministers for each year. It needs to be at least doubled because about 3,000 medical graduates will join the system each year. – The Vibes, March 31, 2023
Dr Muruga Raj Rajathurai is the Malaysian Medical Association president
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