Shift limit: Doctors and dentists at designated government healthcare institutions will have their on-call shifts limited to 18 hours.
PETALING JAYA: Doctors and dentists at selected government healthcare facilities will see their on-call shifts capped at 18 hours, down from the current limit of between 24 and 33, under a Health Ministry pilot project that starts next month.
Their on-call allowance rate has also been raised by between RM55 and RM65 as announced in Budget 2025.
However, with the Waktu Bekerja Berlainan (WBB) system, their take-home pay will be less as they will only be able to claim for active calls on weekends and public holidays, and not for weekday shifts.
According to a circular signed by the ministry’s medical development division director Datuk Dr Mohd Azman Yacob, the ministry had tabled the WBB system to the Public Service Department (PSD) on Dec 5, 2024.
Mohd Azman said the WBB is being introduced to improve officers’ quality of life and to ensure doctors attending to patients are not exhausted from long working hours for the sake of patients’ safety.
Under the WBB system, the active on-call rates for weekdays and public holidays are RM275 for medical officers (MOs) and RM315 for specialists.
As for the current system, MOs are entitled to an active on-call allowance of RM220 on weekends and public holidays and RM200 on weekdays.
Specialists are entitled to RM250 on weekends and public holidays and RM230 on weekdays.
However, with WBB, they will not be able to claim an active on-call allowance on weekdays.
Claims for passive on-call allowance remain.
Even with the new system, the 24-hour service at hospitals will remain, and services can be offered without requiring a drastic increase in manpower.
This will mean the on-call duty hours will be lower than the current 24 to 33 hours.
The pilot run will begin at seven hospitals on Feb 1.
The seven are the Paediatric Department of Hospital Tunku Azizah; the Medical Department of Hospital Slim River; the Obstetrics and Gynaecology department of Hospital Putrajaya; the Orthopaedic Department of Raja Permaisuri Bainun and Melaka hospitals; the Emergency and Trauma Department of the Melaka and Sultanah Bahiyah hospitals; as well as the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Department of Hospital Tengku Ampuan Rahimah.
The circular also included the WBB guideline.
“The basis of implementing this WBB is the service’s interest based on the availability of manpower and facilities,” the circular read.
Active on-call allowances will not be provided for those working late shifts after 5pm on weekdays, as these shifts will be considered as regular working hours that will be accounted into the 45-hour working hours per week.
The pilot project will run for three months.
The WBB will be expanded in the second phase, which will include surgery and anaesthesiology.
The third phase, which will begin later this year, will be the stabilisation and observation phase.
Phase 1 of the programme is set to cost the government RM2,169,180.
On Oct 16, The Star reported that the medical fraternity wanted the government to do away with the 30-hour on-call shift system, which has led to physical and mental exhaustion.
This came after the sister of a medical officer who died in a Penang hospital said she suspected her 31-year-old sister’s untimely death from fluid in her lungs was caused by overwork and exhaustion.
