Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin called for a virtual meeting with the Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) this morning to discuss the issues of contract doctors in our public health care system. We wish to thank him for taking the time to meet with us.
During the meeting, also attended by the health minister, the health secretary-general, the health deputy director-general, and several MMA Exco members, the prime minister announced contract extensions and similar benefits and perks be provided to doctors as immediate short-term steps.
This would allow a contract doctor to now specialise and be eligible for similar perks as their permanent counterparts.
The prime minister explained that due to the pandemic, there are currently several limitations in providing a permanent solution to the issue at this time.
He however expressed his strong commitment in addressing these issues and vowed that he will personally monitor its progress going forward.
The prime minister also stated that MMA should be involved in health care-related policies, in order for the government to get a better picture of the situation on the ground.
MMA welcomes the contract extensions as immediate short-term steps taken by the government. However, we wish to stress again that this is not a solution to the problem, as this pandemic has shown how critical health care workers are.
Therefore, more contract doctors should be absorbed into permanent posts.
The current proposal of a contract extension also needs to be reviewed, as other factors that may delay specialisation should be taken into account.
We look forward to working closely with the prime minister and Ministry of Health on the holistic development of a medium and long-term plan for health care worker employment in the government health care system.
Prof Dr Subramaniam Muniandy is president of the Malaysian Medical Association.
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