Friday October 7, 2005
Perks to woo docs back
I REFER to the letter,ďDonít waste these talents,Ē (The Star, Oct 4).
I would like to thank the writer for expressing his views, all done with good intentions, I am sure.
I wish to emphasise that our Government has always encouraged Malaysian doctors currently employed overseas to return and serve the country.
It cannot be denied there is an acute shortage of expertise in specific fields of tertiary care in the medical services of our country.
Various incentives have been put in place to help and encourage these doctors to return and contribute towards the healthcare services in Malaysia.
The Malaysian Medical Council is ready to welcome and guide them should they decide to return.
New incentives introduced include:
∑Exemption from compulsory service rule for Malaysian practitioners working abroad who are above 45 years old (both specialists and non-specialists), specialists with rare subspecialties (irrespective of age) and doctors who would like to serve the local medical training institutions or the army;
∑Medical practitioners who have completed their housemanship and are accorded full registration with foreign medical councils need not repeat the housemanship requirements;
∑Although the Medical Act 1971 mandates that obstetrics and gynaecology posting be a compulsory component of the housemanship training, the Malaysian Medical Council imposes this ruling only on those who have recently completed their housemanship without undergoing this particular posting during the training.
Medical practitioners with post-graduate degrees or specialists are exempted from this posting; and
∑On the issue of placement, the Health Ministry, being a caring ministry, will consider requests by those returning from abroad to work in specific areas or locali-
ties as long as their services can be optimised for the benefit of
patients in need of their servi-
I am all for encouraging Malaysians working abroad to return to serve the country in the hope that their valuable services can be utilised fully to further enhance the standards, quality and accessibility of healthcare in this coun-try.
I give my firm assurance that the policy of the ministry to place specialists in their relevant specialty areas will be adhered to.
DATUK DR MOHD ISMAIL
Malaysian Medical Council.