PETALING JAYA: The hiring process of civil servants by the Public Service Department (PSD) needs to be reviewed first before any improvement in the public health system can be seen, says former deputy health minister Dr Lee Boon Chye.
He said the hiring quotas for the Health Ministry (MOH) are usually subject to PSD approval.
He lamented the slow bureaucracy of the department’s hiring process for MOH staff.
“PSD’s bureaucracy has been there since Independence, and there are hardly any reforms in the hiring system to keep up with changes and development,” he claimed when asked to comment on the issue of a shortage of manpower at public healthcare facilities, which has led to congestion and long waiting times for patients at hospitals.
Dr Lee said when the MOH wants to hire more permanent healthcare staff, it has to do an internal study on needs and financial implications.
“The Health Minister will then present the recommendations to the Cabinet and get approval with support from the Finance Ministry.
“The PSD will then issue advertisements on the availability of posts. Then interview (candidates) and recruit,” he said in explaining the hiring procedures.
He added that the whole process may take years to complete from the time when a healthcare facility submits a request for additional workers to the government.
“This is the reason why there is a situation of overcrowding, long waiting time for patients to see doctors or specialists at public hospitals. But at the same time, many contract doctors cannot get permanent posts,” said Dr Lee.
For 2023, the MOH announced vacancies for 4,263 permanent positions for medical officers, 335 openings for dentists and 316 for pharmacists.
Public health advocate Datuk Dr Zainal Ariffin Omar, who is also a former MOH official, urged the PSD to give priority to the hiring of healthcare workers.
He added that the issue of hiring staff involves several agencies such as the PSD, the Public Services Commission (SPA), the Finance Ministry and the Health Ministry.
“The increasing number of patients, increasing burden of non-communicable diseases (NCD) and emergency cases as well the high expectations from people, means more workforce and resources are required,” he added.Meanwhile, Hartal Doktor Kontrak hopes for a higher allocation for the MOH under Budget 2023 which will allow for the hiring of more staff and the acquisition of more equipment like CT scans, X-ray machines, surgical equipment and medicines.
As for Hartal Ahli Farmasi Kontrak, which is a movement of contract pharmacists, it is hoped that there will be enough allocation under Budget 2023 to ensure that all pharmacists on contract will be absorbed into permanent posts.
“Please don’t think our work is only to give medicines to patients. There are a lot of other things that patients and people don’t know or see,” said a spokesman for the group.
The revised Budget 2023 will be tabled in the Dewan Rakyat on Feb 24. The MOH was given an allocation of RM36.1bil in that budget which was tabled by the previous government before the dissolution of Parliament last October.
Meanwhile, Health Minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa said her ministry will continue its engagements with various departments on the staffing issue.
“This issue is not the sole responsibility of the MOH, but it should also be discussed with other agencies such as the PSD and Finance Ministry,” she told the Dewan Rakyat.
“If possible, the MOH would want to take on all staff and doctors, but if the positions and funds are unavailable, then we cannot implement this move,” she said in requesting the government’s consideration for an increase in financial allocation for her ministry.
