KUALA LUMPUR, June 26 — More than 100 medical and dental specialists have left the national health service for the private sector each year since 2023, according to a written parliamentary reply by Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad.
A total of 103 medical and dental specialists resigned from the public sector to join the private sector in 2023, followed by 130 in 2024 and 118 in 2025, bringing the three-year total to 351 specialists, or an average of 117 specialist resignations a year.
Responding to a question from Hulu Terengganu MP Rosol Wahid, Dzulkefly said the figures were based on resignation data over the past three years.
“Based on records received by the MOH as of April 30, 2026, among the main reasons for resignation are personal reasons, officers wishing to serve in the private sector, receiving lecturer offers at public institutions of higher learning, and health problems,” he said in the written Dewan Rakyat reply last Tuesday.
The written reply did not identify factors such as workload, burnout, remuneration, career progression, or working conditions among the reasons recorded for specialists’ resignations.
Dzulkefly said the ministry had introduced several measures to retain specialists and curb migration to the private sector.
These include offering Hadiah Latihan Persekutuan (HLP) sponsorships for doctors undergoing subspecialty and area-of-interest training, improving specialist training pathways through Master’s and parallel pathway programmes following amendments to the Medical Act 1971, and providing specialist allowances ranging from RM2,200 to RM3,100 a month.
The ministry also offers placement incentives of between RM500 and RM2,500 a month for medical and dental specialists serving in Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan, a 40 per cent increase in the on-call allowance for medical officers from October 1, 2025, and an elective surgery allowance of RM200 an hour.
Other retention measures include time-based promotions, opportunities to attend short-term overseas training, and additional income through the Full Paying Patient (FPP) scheme, under which specialists may receive between 40 per cent and 100 per cent of the medical fees paid by patients who opt for the service.
Dzulkefly also said eligible Grade UD14 specialists who have been gazetted for at least four years are entitled to one day a week during official working hours to conduct medical research, teach at universities, or undertake locum work in the private sector.
In addition, specialists may perform locum work outside official working hours in the private sector, subject to stipulated conditions.
