Cabinet agrees to create another 4,186 permanent posts at Health Ministry this year - Khairy

This involves 3,586 medical officers, 300 dental officers and 300 pharmacy officers whose appointments will be made beginning in June, he said during a press conference after holding a dialogue session with the Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) here today.

Khairy said the Cabinet also agreed that at least 1,500 permanent posts for medical officers, dental officers and pharmacy officers would be created in the MOH each year, from 2023 to 2025.

He said the Cabinet also agreed that 800 permanent positions for medical specialists and 70 for dental experts would be created at the MOH every year starting in 2023, to accommodate permanent specialists at health facilities under the MOH.

"Through this latest decision, at least 8,686 additional permanent posts involving medical officers, dental officers and pharmacy officers will be created from 2022 to 2025," he said.

In addition, he said 800 permanent appointments for medical officers and 70 dental officers could be made each year to fill the vacancies left by medical officers who were appointed as specialists.

"This is a new deal or new offer to junior doctors so that they have a fair chance to compete for permanent positions," he said.

From 2016 till the end of 2021, a total of 1,118 medical officers, 1,019 dental officers and 1,288 pharmacy officers were appointed on a permanent basis.

Khairy said advertisements for all the posts would be put up this month, and it was open to those who had completed graduate training, were fully registered with the Malaysian Medical Council, had no disciplinary cases and were certified fit for appointment.

He said candidates will also go through preliminary screening, and recruitment would be done in a transparent and fair manner, with the process to be refined before being announced by Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.

Khairy said the Cabinet was informed that the permanent appointments concerned the requirements of the ministry, and was not just a matter with regard to contract doctors.

"We need more experts, doctors, and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob also supports the MOH's recommendation and has approved this application, including the additional allocation given by the Ministry of Finance," he said.

Khairy said a roadmap was being developed by the MOH together with the relevant agencies and ministries to find short, medium and long-term solutions to the crisis involving those appointed on contract.

The roadmap also includes the establishment of technical committees for Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Dental Surgery to optimise the capacity of offering programmes and control the quality of graduates.

"It is also to evaluate and update the list of the Second Schedule of the Medical Act 1971, implement the Professional Qualification Examination to address issues of quality and competence of graduates and strengthen the National Specialist Studies Programme," he added.