The increased number of permanent positions for healthcare staff is just one among a slew of measures the Health Ministry is taking this year as it also seeks to address congestion at emergency departments.

In her New Year’s address yesterday, Health Minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa said 4,914 permanent positions would be available from the ministry for 2023, comprising 4,263 positions for medical officers, 335 openings for dentists and 316 for pharmacists.

“The issue of permanent posts has been often talked about; hence, I would like to announce that in 2023, the Health Ministry will increase the allocation for permanent positions,” she said.

Dr Zaliha said recruitment for the positions would be open from Jan 6-21.

“On that note, I hope eligible candidates can fill in and submit their applications with complete and accurate information as soon as possible,” she added.

Last year, then Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin had announced that 4,053 contract healthcare workers would be offered permanent positions, which at that time was the highest since the contract system was rolled out in 2016.

According to statistics provided last year, of the 55,981 medical officers employed under the Health Ministry, 23,096 including 19 specialists were on contract, while 32,885 including 5,993 specialists were permanent staff.

Dr Zaliha said her ministry was also considering extending the operation hours for health clinics (klinik kesihatan) and to divert non-critical cases to these clinics to prevent crowding at emergency departments at hospitals.

This would be done once health clinics have sufficient resources.

She referred to the Auditor-General’s 2019 report that the average wait time at emergency departments was longer than six hours.

“About 70% of these cases are green zone cases (non-critical/cold cases). This goes against the scope or real function of the emergency department, which should only receive critical cases,” she said in her address at the Health Ministry yesterday.

“To overcome this problem, I have proposed that state health directors look into local health clinics under their purview operating for extended hours,” she said, adding that there were clinics in Klang that operated until 10pm.

However, she said there must be proper and thorough planning to ensure that there was no serious constraint on resources.

“Hospital directors must ensure that the new service is implemented immediately after approvals are given for new positions, additional human resources and finances,” she added.

To ensure effective service at hospitals, state health directors were also advised to realign their manpower, foe example, by rotating officers between health clinics and hospitals.

“This measure will reduce the issue related to extremely long working hours for healthcare staff and will in turn reduce or prevent burnout,” she said, adding that she herself had served as a physician in an emergency department.

Dr Zaliha also said her ministry was expecting 30 healthcare facility projects to be completed and operational soon.

This included Hospital Pendang in Kedah, Hospital Kemaman in Terengganu, and Beaufort Hospital in Sabah. Tawau Hospital, on the other hand, was still being renovated.

“It is hoped that better healthcare services could be provided and the needs of residents and customers in such places fulfilled after these facilities are completed,” she added.

The Health Ministry has also introduced Braille medicine labels that would be made available at 250 selected public healthcare facilities across the country to help visually impaired patients.

Some 55,000 visually impaired people would benefit from the initiative, she said.

The Braille labels will contain details of the medicine such as type and purpose as well as the prescribed dose.

This, said Dr Zaliha, was the government’s way of upholding visually impaired persons’ right to accurate information and safe consumption of medicine.

The ministry will also resume human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccinations for Form 1 female students after a temporary disruption due to a global supply disruption of HPV vaccines.

Dr Zaliha said the ministry received 100,000 doses of the cervical cancer vaccine last December.

The ministry will also expand virtual clinic services to 100 more health clinics, bringing the total number of clinics with virtual services to 370.

Similarly, teledentistry or virtual dental clinics will be implemented at 114 dental clinics.

Online appointments will also be made available at 239 dental clinics nationwide.

Source:
courtesy of THE STAR

by RAGANANTHINI VETHASALAM

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