Perks for health workers
PETALING JAYA: Nurses, assistant medical officers, healthcare assistants and community nurses who care for psychiatric, tuberculosis (TB) and leprosy patients at Health Ministry facilities will be paid a monthly allowance of RM100.
Health Ministry secretary-general Datuk Seri Suriani Ahmad, in a circular, said this applies to officers who serve in special wards and is not confined to those serving at the National Leprosy Control Centre in Sungai Buloh or the Institute of Respiratory Medicine in Kuala Lumpur.
The incentive is extended to those serving at Health Ministry hospitals that provide such services, adding that the order took effect on Oct 1 last year.
To qualify for this allowance, officers will have to serve at leprosy or TB wards full time.
In March, five leprosy cases were reported in Selangor while nine cases were reported in Negri Sembilan in February.
Malaysia reported 26,183 TB cases in 2024, a marginal increase of 34 cases from 2023.
Around 21,959 of these infections involved Malaysians, which is lower than the 22,132 cases reported the year before.
According to the March 6 circular, there are a total of 61 hospitals nationwide with psychiatric wards.
While there are no specific hospitals listed out for leprosy, there are 19 hospitals with TB wards.
In another circular, Suriani said assistant medical officers who serve alone at health clinics in Sabah and Sarawak will qualify for a passive on-call allowance of RM100 monthly if they serve after office hours.
This order came into effect on Sept 1 last year.
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