PETALING JAYA: A shortage of public healthcare workers will hamper the implementation of the Waktu Bekerja Berlainan (WBB) pilot shift system despite a reduction in working hours, says the medical fraternity.
They say the income of public healthcare medical officers will also be affected, as the increased on-call allowance is only eligible for those working on-call shifts during weekends and public holidays.
While those on the WBB on-call shift system will work fewer on-call hours, they will lose income because they will not be able to claim weekday on-call allowances, said Malaysian Medical Association president Datuk Dr Kalwinder Singh Khaira.
“Under the WBB shift system, there is also no allowance for working past 5pm on weekdays. Graveyard shifts are treated as regular working hours and included as part of the 45-hour work week,” he said in a statement.Dr Kalwinder said there is still insufficient manpower on the ground, adding that this will make it difficult to implement the WBB system.
“Manpower issues of healthcare worker maldistribution and shortages must be resolved first.
“At the moment, the current healthcare distribution of our healthcare workforce is struggling to manage the high workloads. Any reduction in work hours without addressing manpower shortages will impact inpatient care and the running of clinics and other hospital services,” he said.
He urged the Health Ministry’s Medical Advisory and Action Committee to further engage with clinicians and other stakeholders on the ground.
“We call on the government to immediately implement this announced increase in on-call allowance across all public healthcare facilities, regardless of shift system. As it stands, hospitals and departments that cannot implement it due to manpower shortages will leave their doctors without any benefit,” he said.
Dr Kalwinder said the manpower shortage and reduced income under the new system risks further demoralising an already overworked workforce.
He added that public healthcare workers eagerly waiting for good news have been left disappointed instead.
He said the on-call allowance, which has not seen an increase for over a decade, serves as compensation for medical officers and specialists, recognising their dedication and sacrifices in delivering 24-hour healthcare services daily.
“Address manpower shortages and engage stakeholders. Only then can we move on to meaningful reforms that will benefit both healthcare workers and the public,” he said.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, a doctor and healthcare advocate said doctors were under the impression that the on-call rates would be increased by RM55-RM65.
“However, what the Health Ministry presented instead is a convoluted package instead.
“When the Prime Minister announced this during the budget, we thought medical officers would be better compensated for their services.
“Given the current package, however, it is clear that the medical officer will receive less,” he said.
Another doctor said the lesser pay may prompt more doctors to leave the service.
“This will further strain the public healthcare system, and the waiting time will be longer,” he said.
An orthopaedic surgeon at a government hospital questioned if it would really be an increment, as only doctors working weekend and public holiday on-call shifts would be eligible for the increased allowance.
“The new system also means overall take-home pay at the end of the month will be less.
“Yes, the system provides fewer working hours. But the shift allowances are limited to only weekends. What about those working on-call on weekdays?” he asked.
Hartal Doktor Kontrak spokesperson Dr Muhammad Yassin said no consultation was made with the group about this.
“We will wait for the pilot project first. But the main question is, do we have enough manpower to do this shift system across all specialities and hospitals?” he said.