KUALA LUMPUR: The Health Ministry reaffirms its commitment to retaining doctors and healthcare workers within Malaysia's public health system, despite having no legal authority to prevent them from accepting job offers abroad.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad said the ministry was implementing various measures to encourage healthcare workers to stay, including expediting permanent position appointments among contract doctors.
"We cannot block cross-border recruitment, it's an individual right. This is also aligned with the Mutual Recognition Arrangement and the Asean Framework Agreement on Services.
"These agreements allow for labour mobility across Asean countries, as mutually agreed. That said, we want our doctors, specialists, and nurses with post-basic training to stay with us," he told reporters at the national-level combating Aedes mega programme in conjunction with Asean Dengue Day 2025.
He was responding to viral social media claims that hospitals in Singapore were actively recruiting Malaysian public healthcare workers, particularly doctors, with lucrative salary offers.
It is understood that a direct recruitment session for doctors and general practitioners will be held at a hotel here next month.
Dzulkefly said the ministry was currently expediting the transition of contract doctors to permanent positions, given the country's critical need for medical professionals.
"We won't delay; we are expediting the process to absorb contract workers into permanent roles. As soon as there are vacancies, we will act," he said.
He explained that the contract doctor system was initially introduced to address the surge in medical graduates and the limited number of permanent posts over the past decade.
"That situation no longer applies, as the number of medical graduates has dropped significantly. There should now be enough positions available for new permanent appointments," he added. – Bernama
