Dzulkefly welcomes criticism, vows action over healthcare issues
PETALING JAYA : Health minister Dzulkefly Ahmad says he is open to criticism and is ready to provide clarification on any issue related to his ministry.
Dzulkefly said he accepts criticism as a challenge – and not an attack – because he viewed his ministerial post as a duty entrusted by the public.
'Between 'shape up or ship out', I choose to 'shape up', not with slogans but with work.
'I don't promise that everything can be solved, but I do promise that we will listen, we will act, and we won't keep quiet,' he said.
He was responding to an editorial published in Utusan Malaysia which raised concerns about the lack of nurses, the on-call allowance, and the ePlacement system.
Dzulkefly denied that there is a shortage of 43,243 nurses in the public healthcare sector, stating that there is a total of 120,667 nurses nationwide.
He said the health ministry is gradually recruiting nursing graduates from public and private colleges through the public services commission (SPA) and has doubled the capacity of the ministry's health training institute.
'The moratorium on private nursing programmes has also been lifted, while entry requirements for diploma (programmes) have been lowered from five to three SPM credits. Programmes are open to students holding STPM, STAM, SVM, UEC and other qualifications,' he said.
In response to a question about when guidelines for managing bullying in the workplace for health ministry staff will be released, Dzulkefly said they would be made public in October in conjunction with World Mental Health Month.
He also defended the decision to cancel the placements for doctors in February because of technical issues in the ePlacement system.
He said the system has been improved and 2,248 medical officers have since been offered permanent appointments through the system.
The ministry has also conducted a review of the medical staff shortage at healthcare facilities that do not implement the flexible working hours scheme and found that on-call allowance cannot be implemented at this time.
'I have instructed the health director-general to continue seeking solutions to realise the provision of on-call allowance that would benefit eligible healthcare workers,' he said.
Dzulkefly also said his ministry has completed amendments to the Medicine Act 1971 and the Medicine Regulations 2025, and enforced the long-awaited amendments recognising parallel pathway specialists.
He said the ministry has approved additional allocations for hospitals, new and dilapidated clinics, and strengthened permanent appointments of doctors, nurses and health officials.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Free Malaysia Today
2 hours ago
- Free Malaysia Today
Trump's attorney general drops fraud case tied to Covid vaccinations
US attorney general Pam Bondi argued that the doctor charged with falsifying vaccine records didn't warrant imprisonment. (EPA Images pic) WASHINGTON : US Attorney General Pam Bondi on Saturday dropped a case against a Utah doctor accused of falsifying Covid-19 vaccination certificates and destroying more than US$28,000 worth of government-provided Covid-19 vaccines. Bondi, in a statement posted on X, said Michael Kirk Moore Jr of Salt Lake County, Utah, did not deserve the jail time he was facing. Moore was indicted by a federal grand jury in 2023, and his trial had begun earlier this month. 'Dr. Moore gave his patients a choice when the federal government refused to do so. He did not deserve the years in prison he was facing. It ends today,' Bondi said. Covid-19 vaccine sceptics have been embraced by the Trump administration. The Pentagon, for example, has sought to re-enlist servicemembers who were ousted for refusing to be vaccinated during the pandemic. Health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr, who for decades has sown doubt about the safety of vaccines contrary to evidence and research by scientists, wrote on X in April: 'Dr. Moore deserves a medal for his courage and his commitment to healing!' According to a 2023 statement from the US attorney's office in Utah, Moore allegedly ran the false certifications out of a plastic surgery centre. His activities allegedly included administering saline shots to minors, at the request of their parents, so the children would think they were receiving Covid-19 vaccines, the statement said. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a US lawmaker from Georgia and staunch Trump supporter, had championed dropping the case against Moore, who she called a hero in a statement on Saturday. 'We can never again allow our government to turn tyrannical under our watch,' she said in a post on X. The latest move by Bondi comes amid scrutiny of her firings of senior justice department officials who worked on investigations into Trump, stoking accusations of political retribution in a department whose mission is to enforce US laws.
Free Malaysia Today
9 hours ago
- Free Malaysia Today
Medical brain drain will continue if pay isn't improved, says Dr Sim
Sarawak deputy premier Dr Sim Kui Hian, who is a cardiologist, said many doctors are burdened by rising living costs. (Bernama pic) PETALING JAYA : Sarawak deputy premier Dr Sim Kui Hian has sounded a warning that the brain drain of doctors, especially from East Malaysia, will persist if the remuneration scheme isn't improved. Sim, who is a cardiologist, said the brain drain would place greater strain on the national health service, the Borneo Post reported. 'We cannot continue with the notion that 'we are cheap and good'. In 2025, we are good, but we need to be paid better,' he was quoted as saying. Sim's comments came in response to a call from the Malaysian Medical Association for the federal government to speed up reforms in the national health service in the face of recruitment efforts by neighbouring countries offering far more attractive compensation packages. Sim said many doctors are burdened by rising living costs. 'Medicine may be a noble calling, but we must be realistic. Doctors have families to support, children to educate, and loans to repay, despite the strengthening ringgit,' he said. Earlier today, the health ministry said it remained committed to retaining doctors and healthcare workers in Malaysia although it has no legal power to stop them from working abroad. Health minister Dzulkefly Ahmad said among the measures taken by his ministry was to accelerate the appointment of contract doctors to permanent positions in light of the country's critical need for medical professionals. Dzulkefly's assurance comes in the wake of a recruitment session by Singapore's health ministry , which is reportedly scheduled to be held at a hotel in Kuala Lumpur next month.
Free Malaysia Today
9 hours ago
- Free Malaysia Today
Dzulkefly welcomes criticism, vows action over healthcare issues
Health minister Dzulkefly Ahmad said he chooses to 'shape up' instead of 'ship out', not with slogans but with work. PETALING JAYA : Health minister Dzulkefly Ahmad says he is open to criticism and is ready to provide clarification on any issue related to his ministry. Dzulkefly said he accepts criticism as a challenge – and not an attack – because he viewed his ministerial post as a duty entrusted by the public. 'Between 'shape up or ship out', I choose to 'shape up', not with slogans but with work. 'I don't promise that everything can be solved, but I do promise that we will listen, we will act, and we won't keep quiet,' he said. He was responding to an editorial published in Utusan Malaysia which raised concerns about the lack of nurses, the on-call allowance, and the ePlacement system. Dzulkefly denied that there is a shortage of 43,243 nurses in the public healthcare sector, stating that there is a total of 120,667 nurses nationwide. He said the health ministry is gradually recruiting nursing graduates from public and private colleges through the public services commission (SPA) and has doubled the capacity of the ministry's health training institute. 'The moratorium on private nursing programmes has also been lifted, while entry requirements for diploma (programmes) have been lowered from five to three SPM credits. Programmes are open to students holding STPM, STAM, SVM, UEC and other qualifications,' he said. In response to a question about when guidelines for managing bullying in the workplace for health ministry staff will be released, Dzulkefly said they would be made public in October in conjunction with World Mental Health Month. He also defended the decision to cancel the placements for doctors in February because of technical issues in the ePlacement system. He said the system has been improved and 2,248 medical officers have since been offered permanent appointments through the system. The ministry has also conducted a review of the medical staff shortage at healthcare facilities that do not implement the flexible working hours scheme and found that on-call allowance cannot be implemented at this time. 'I have instructed the health director-general to continue seeking solutions to realise the provision of on-call allowance that would benefit eligible healthcare workers,' he said. Dzulkefly also said his ministry has completed amendments to the Medicine Act 1971 and the Medicine Regulations 2025, and enforced the long-awaited amendments recognising parallel pathway specialists. He said the ministry has approved additional allocations for hospitals, new and dilapidated clinics, and strengthened permanent appointments of doctors, nurses and health officials.
