Materia Medica Malaysiana

Private wings can make doctors stay back

KUALA LUMPUR: One reason for setting up private wings in public hospitals is to get doctors to continue their service with the Government, said deputy Health Minister Datuk Dr Abdul Latiff Ahmad.

He said many health professionals had found jobs in the private sector more lucrative.

“By letting our government specialists become legalised locums, we can be sure they will not leave government hospitals as they will be able to earn extra income by seeing patients in the private wings,” he told reporters after launching World Nurses Day at Hospital Kuala Lumpur here, yesterday.

Dr Abdul Latiff said the ministry welcomed the suggestion for government doctors to use facilities at private hospitals, adding that this created a ‘free-flow’ of skills where government specialists could earn extra and still work for public hospitals.

He said the public health system here was facing problems similar to the British National Health Service. He added, however, “only a Malaysian solution should be found for a Malaysian problem”.

To an opinion voiced by Association of Private Hospitals president Datuk Dr Ridzwan Bakar that the private wings in public hospitals would not necessarily be cheaper than the private hospitals, Dr Abdul Latif said the association had the right to voice its views.

“Of course there will be problems,” he said.

He added: “We are trying to establish the best system for the Malaysian public health establishment as no other country has a system where the public gets excellent health care for as low as RM1.”