Materia Medica Malaysiana

Doctors can apply for practising cert early

Doctors can now apply for their Annual Practising Certificate (APC) starting July 1 instead of Dec 1 as was the practice earlier.
Malaysian Medical Council president Datuk Dr Ismail Merican said the change was to avoid late applications.
He said some doctors were in the habit of submitting applications at the eleventh hour and were often imposed a RM50 late fee. This caused backlogs and delays in the issuance of certificates.
Dr Ismail, who is the Director-General of Health, also cautioned doctors about practising within the areas specified in the APCs and locum work.
On the areas, he said: "There is no limit to the number of places of practice under the APC. But doctors must practise in these speficied places and nowhere else."
He added that the MMC had received numerous reports of doctors working in clinics they were not permitted to, including performing plastic surgery in beauty salons.
On locum work, he said government doctors were only allowed to do so in government hospitals and not in private clinics as most of them were now doing.