KUALA LUMPUR, August 6 — About 82.7 per cent, or 8,008 out of 9,683 specialist doctors in the Ministry of Health (MOH), are serving in clinical positions in hospitals as of last June 1, said Dzulkefly Ahmad.
According to the health minister, these 8,008 specialists, plus another 1,526 out of 1,865 pre-gazettement specialists (82.2 per cent), are posted in 122 of 150 government hospitals under the ministry for 27 general specialty and 180 subspecialty services nationwide.
The MOH data provided by Dzulkefly in a written Dewan Negara reply last July 23 to Senator Wong You Fong shows that 1,675 specialists in the ministry (excluding pre-gazettement specialists) aren’t serving in clinical positions in hospitals.
“Generally, by 2030, MOH projects a need for 22,435 specialists,” said Dzulkefly.
The 8,008 specialists and 1,526 pre-gazettement specialists working as clinicians in MOH hospitals total 9,534, less than half of the projected need in four years’ time.
Dzulkefly didn’t explain where the remaining 1,675 specialists, who aren’t providing specialty services in hospitals, are working, such as whether they’re mostly serving in administrative positions across the MOH, be it headquarters, state health departments, district health offices, hospitals, or clinics.
MOH data presented last year shows that the public sector currently has 549 family medicine specialists and 421 public health specialists. Assuming that all 970 are serving as clinicians in public health clinics, that still leaves more than 700 specialists in the MOH with unknown positions.
In a separate July 23 parliamentary reply to Senator Ahmad Ibrahim, Dzulkefly said as of last March 31, Sabah recorded a 23.6 per cent vacancy rate for specialist doctors, with 221 out of 937 positions vacant. Sarawak recorded a 20.5 per cent vacancy rate for specialist doctors, with 177 out of 863 positions vacant.
