Better salaries needed to stop health workers exodus to Singapore
10 Jul 2025 07:45pm
Johor Health and Environment Committee chairman Ling Tian Soon said the intake of more trainees, particularly doctors and nurses, must also be given serious attention. - 123RF photo
JOHOR BAHRU - The Ministry of Health (MOH) has been urged to consider offering better salaries to address the issue of healthcare workers choosing to work in Singapore due to attractive offers.
Johor Health and Environment Committee chairman Ling Tian Soon said the intake of more trainees, particularly doctors and nurses, must also be given serious attention.
He noted that attractive salary offers from hospitals in Singapore to healthcare workers in Johor is not a new issue.
"Some hospitals in Singapore are offering very attractive packages to healthcare workers in Johor, and some have already accepted those offers.
"What we aim to do is to discuss with MOH on increasing the number of trainees and offering better pay and opportunities so they feel appreciated serving in the public healthcare system,' he said at a press conference after the Johor State-level Nurses Day 2025 celebration here today.
Also present was Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi.
Ling was commenting on a viral post on social media about job offers for Malaysian doctors in Singapore, with lucrative salaries reaching over RM300,000 a year.
He said such efforts to improve remuneration would help boost the commitment of healthcare workers to continue serving in the country.
Earlier, some 1,000 nurses attended the Johor State-level Nurses Day celebration, where Onn Hafiz also announced an allocation of RM400,000 for the welfare of nurses in the state. - BERNAMA
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