KUALA LUMPUR – The Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) has dismissed recent comments by a PAS lawmaker who claimed that nurses employed in public healthcare centres are made to wear “tight” uniforms.
MMA president Dr Muruga Raj Rajathurai decried Kuantan MP Wan Razali Wan Nor’s statement, which was voiced in the Dewan Rakyat yesterday, as “sad”, especially amid nationwide concerns over the future and sustainability of the public healthcare system.
Dr Muruga also expressed his confusion over Wan Razali’s assertions, noting that all nurses in the public sector adhere to the dress code prescribed to civil servants.
“We believe that the current Health Ministry (issued) uniforms for nurses are practical as they do not restrict movement when nurses carry out their duties,” he said in a statement today.
“In the healthcare line, everyone needs to be fast on their feet and, at times, ready to sprint to save lives.”
Yesterday, health advocacy think tank Galen Centre issued a similar condemnation towards Wan Razali, with its chief executive officer Azrul Mohd Khalib taking to Twitter to pan the opposition backbencher for using his allocated date and time to raise “unexpected” issues.
Addressing the lower House, Wan Razali had urged the Health Ministry to look into the supposedly “tight” uniforms worn by nurses in government hospitals, claiming that such outfits are a “Western custom”.
He also lamented how most nurses working in government hospitals are dressed in outfits that “show off their body shape”.
Wan Razali’s comments were later supported by his party colleague and Temerloh MP Salamiah Mohd Nor, who briefly said that she backs the call for more “shariah-compliant” uniforms for nurses in government hospitals. – The Vibes, June 16, 2023
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