PUTRAJAYA: The Public Service Department (PSD) has approved the creation of 66,312 new non-trade-off posts for the Health Ministry, involving a financial implication of RM6.7bil to strengthen the nation’s public healthcare system.
It had approved the creation of 53,516 new non-trade-off posts to support the operation of new healthcare facilities, upgrade projects for existing facilities and to enhance the delivery of healthcare services to the public, with a financial implication of RM4.5bil.
In addition, it said in a statement that the government has also approved the creation of 12,796 permanent posts for three key schemes – medical officers, dental officers and pharmacists – from 2022 until June 30 this year, with a financial implication of RM2.2bil.
The PSD said that, together with the Finance Ministry, it is also reviewing an application to create 13,000 new non-trade-off posts to support the operation of 256 new and upgraded healthcare facilities, with an estimated financial implication of RM1.25bil.
“The creation of new posts, strengthening the career pathways of healthcare personnel and the development of healthcare facilities are being implemented on an ongoing basis to ensure the public continues to receive quality healthcare services,” it said, as reported by Bernama.
Based on Malaysia Health Indicators 2025 published by the Health Ministry, the PSD said the national medical officers-to-population ratio now stands at about 1:403, thus achieving the target set for 2026.
“However, this achievement does not mean that all healthcare facilities have the same level of human resource capacity.
“There are significant disparities in the distribution of medical officers across states and federal territories. For example, the medical officers-to-population ratio in Putrajaya is about 1:19, far exceeding the national average,” it said.
The PSD said these statistics indicate that the current challenge is no longer solely about creating new posts.
“Instead, the challenge now is focused on the effective distribution, placement and optimal utilisation of human resources to ensure that every hospital and healthcare facility has the capacity required to provide the best possible services to the public,” it added.
