KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 17 — Fewer than six in 10 contract medical officers reported for duty in Sarawak for permanent appointments this year, according to the Ministry of Health (MOH).
MOH made 764 offers of permanent placements for Sarawak, the highest compared to other states, including in the peninsula.
“As of November 2025, only 432 or 57 per cent of contract medical officers reported for duty for permanent placements in Sarawak,” said Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad in a written Dewan Negara reply last December 10 to Senator Ahmad Ibrahim.
This means that 332 doctors were no-shows or rejected their permanent appointment offers.
“Among the main challenges faced by the MOH in managing the placement of health care workers is the willingness of staff to be posted to any locality, including rural and remote areas of Sarawak,” said Dzulkefly.
“This issue is not only faced by MOH, but is also encountered by other ministries such as the Ministry of Education (MOE), which likewise faces refusals by education service officers (teachers) to be posted to Sarawak.”
The health minister acknowledged that the reluctance of medical officers to be posted to designated facilities affected the delivery of health care services, particularly in rural and remote areas of Sarawak.
“In collaboration with central agencies, MOH has implemented various initiatives to ensure career continuity for these medical officers in the public service, including increasing the number of permanent posts and streamlining the process for permanent appointments.
“However, there remains a group of contract medical officers who choose to continue serving on a contract basis or to resign because they do not agree with placements for permanent appointments by MOH.”
Dzulkefly cited an incentive payment of between RM500 and RM2,500 monthly for medical and dental specialists posted to Sabah, Sarawak, and Labuan, as well as Bayaran Insentif Mengikut Lokasi dan Tahap Kesusahan (BIMLTK) of between RM500 and RM1,500 monthly for postings to the interiors of Sarawak.
“Besides monetary incentives, MOH supports the Sarawak state government’s initiative to offer scholarships to Sarawak-borns to pursue specialist studies in medicine at higher educational institutions in Sarawak.”
