Belanjawan 2027 perlu tangani kekurangan doktor, kata Adun Sabah

Sabah MP Masiung Banah hopes that the 2027 budget will address the growing concern of doctor shortages, as the ratio of doctors to the population stands at one for every 400 people. The MP emphasized the need for a complete restructuring of the public healthcare job offers, which he expects to be highlighted by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim during the 9th of October budget speech.

According to Banah, the government, especially the Health Ministry, must compete with the offers of higher salaries and better career prospects in developed countries to retain local doctors. "Local doctors and nursing graduates prefer to migrate abroad due to dissatisfaction with the contract-based healthcare system offered," he stated in a statement.

Additionally, higher exchange rates and better remuneration for foreign doctors attract their interest. Banah urged the government to reinstate the fixed-term employment offer system for government doctors, including specialists, with a more consistent salary package. The contract-based recruitment offer is only suitable for foreign-trained doctors, he added, serving as the president of the Sabah PAN (People's Action Network) club.

Dr. Maliana Shaharudin, a BIMB Securities Research analyst, told Bloomberg Markets Malaysia that the main challenge in the healthcare sector currently lies in the shortage of specialist doctors, rather than the lack of nursing graduates. By 2030, the healthcare system is expected to face a shortage of over 13,000 specialists, causing concern about the country's ability to meet the increasing demand due to an aging population and the rise in chronic diseases.

Recently, the President of the Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) for Sabah, Dr. Brandon Patrick Senagang, voiced concerns over the doctor shortage in the state.