A RANGE of initiatives has been introduced to encourage healthcare personnel to remain in the public sector, with 7,772 contract medical officers and nurses appointed to permanent positions in 2025, says Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad (pic).
He said the measures include increasing permanent positions for appointment of medical officers and nurses under the ministry.
“In 2025, the Health Ministry offered permanent appointments to 4,518 contract medical officers.
“It also granted exemptions for interim contract appointments for newly-appointed nurses.
“As a result, 3,254 nurses were appointed permanently to fill vacancies in 2025,” he said in a written reply to Datuk Sri Dr Richard Riot Jaem (GPS-Serian).
Riot had asked the Health Ministry to state the measures and efforts taken to address the issue of doctors and nurses resigning, which disrupts operations in government hospitals.
Dzulkefly said the retention strategy was complemented by improvements in remuneration and allowances, including salary adjustments for civil servants, which also benefit doctors and nurses.
“Salaries were increased by 8% in December 2024, followed by a further 7% increase in January 2026.
“The rate for the on-call duty allowance, which had not been reviewed since 2011, was increased by about 40% with effect from Oct 1, 2025.
“Under the revised structure, on-call payments now range from RM110 to RM350 per night, compared with RM80 to RM250 previously,” he added.
The provision of Specialist Incentive Payments and Pre-Publication Specialist Incentive Payments ranging from RM2,200 to RM3,100 per month was also introduced, he said.
“Aside from that, various other initiatives such as the E-Placement System, the Mutual Exchange System and others provide additional incentives for healthcare personnel.
“As the Health Minister, I am continuously working to improve the welfare and incentives of healthcare workers from time to time,” added Dzulkefly.
