KUALA LUMPUR, July 1 — The Health Ministry (MOH) is studying several proposed new policies on the appointment and placement of medical officers through its Human Resource Reform programme.
Its minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad, said the matter is among the ministry’s efforts to address the shortage of medical officers in MOH facilities nationwide.
“We are now restructuring to fine-tune the new policies under our human resource reform to tackle the problems, shortage and maldistribution in a single Human Resource Reform policy, which would be reviewed,” he said during the oral question and answer session in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Dr Dzulkefly was responding to Pekan MP Datuk Seri Sh Mohmed Puzi Sh Ali’s query on the current doctor-patient ratio and aggressive efforts to address the critical shortage of medical officers.
He added that MOH has implemented various initiatives to increase the number of doctors at MOH health facilities to achieve the target ratio of one doctor to 400 residents (1:400) by 2025.
This includes increasing medical graduate training slots at MOH from 10,835 in 2013 to 12,198 this year and collaborating with various parties, including the Higher Education Ministry and the private sector, to attract students to study medicine.
“Based on the 2023 Health Indicators issued by the Ministry of Health, the ratio of doctors to residents in 2022 has reached a ratio of one doctor to 412 residents compared to a ratio of one doctor to 758 residents in 2012.
“Although the indicator of the ratio to doctors shows a satisfactory increase, the Ministry of Health is committed to continuing implementing various initiatives to further increase the number of doctors in Ministry of Health facilities, and as an upper middle-income country, we will continue to improve this ratio of 1:412,” Dr Dzulkefly said.
In comparison, Singapore has a ratio of 1:270, the UK 1:357, Australia 1:270, Austria 1:192, Thailand 1:1,111, and Indonesia 1:1,400.
— Bernama
