WITH contractual doctors vowing to launch a protest on July 1, Umno calls for the Government to improve and introduce “radical” steps to overhaul the Health Ministry.
“The Government must intervene to address this. The call for strike by contract-based doctors must be handled with care and tact.
“We’re talking about over 23,000 medical officers who weren’t absorbed into permanent service despite graduating and completing their houseman ship since 2016.
“Plus, I don’t think the plan to extend their contracts until end of next year is feasible, given Malaysia’s long -term healthcare needs,” its deputy president Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan said, in a Facebook post.
Recently, contract doctors have bemoaned the fact that over 23,000 of them have yet to get absorbed automatically as permanent staff, as it was the practice in the past.
Many of them have been serving since December 2016, adding they were unhappy that the Government had only promised to extend their contracts until December next year.
Several non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have urged the Government to come up with a comprehensive plan to address the issue, saying the problem would only multiply in the future as more than 4,000 doctors graduate every year.
Yesterday, Free Malaysia Today reported the Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) reassuring contract doctors they are currently working with the authorities to resolve the matter.
“As doctors, our first and foremost guiding principle is still to do no harm. While the MMA will not condone a work strike during a pandemic, we will instead be planning for a day of solidarity for our junior doctors,” it was reported saying.
Absorb contract doctors as permanent staff
Touching on the matter, Mohamad Hasan said that COVID-19 has revealed how Malaysia’s healthcare sector as in dire need of reforms to cope with future challenges.
He also said the country needs more hospitals, on top of specialists, medical officers and qualified nurses who can deliver quality service to all, irrespective of their social standing.
“I agree the practise in the past has been about filling only vacant positions but now I feel it’s best for the Government to offer permanent employment to the contract doctors.
“The public healthcare sector now cannot be operating on the scale and regulation set during the pre-pandemic years.
“The Health Ministry needs to draft a sustainable plan and strategise on how to fill specialist in areas such as primary care, psychiatry, hospital development, preventive care and medical research,” the Rantau state assemblyman stressed.
Mohamad Hasan added: “The Government need not compromise on quality but the priority now is to get all hands on deck to contain COVID-19 and appreciate the sacrifices made by our frontliners.” – June 27, 2021.
