Materia Medica Malaysiana

Ministries to discuss shortage of docs

Melaka: Health Minister Dr Chua Soi Lek says the country’s doctor shortage has prompted him to discuss with officials from the Higher Education Ministry on ways to alleviate the problem.

The country’s doctor-patient ratio of 1:1,420 is still way behind the 2020 target of 1:650, he said, adding that while the situation in Kuala Lumpur may be good at 1:440, for Sabah, Sarawak, Kelantan and Terengganu, the ratio of 1:2,600 was not satisfactory.

“The Government’s aim is not just to increase the number of doctors but also to maintain their quality, as international and local recognition will enable them to do post-graduate courses overseas,” he said at the second convocation of the Melaka Medical College-Manipal where 141 graduates received their scrolls.

At present, he said, the Government recognised medical degrees from 450 foreign universities in 30 countries, as well as degrees from six public and four private local universities.

Two public and seven private universities have also been given the go-ahead to run medical courses, he added.

Medical graduates from universities not recognised by the Government, he said, could undergo training at Universiti Malaya, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia or Universiti Sains Malaysia before being allowed to sit for examinations and register with the Malaysian Medical Council if they passed in less than three sittings.

There are some 200 medical graduates from unrecognised universities, mostly from Indonesia, India and China. - Bernama