GOVT TACKLING NURSE SHORTAGE
Ministry asking PSD to approve recruitment, says minister
THE Health Ministry is pulling out all the stops to resolve the shortage of nurses in government clinics and hospitals.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad said the ministry has sought the Public Service
Department’s (PSD) approval to allow the employment of nurses, in spite of the moratorium placed on their appointment.
He said the ministry was working to address the shortage.
He agreed that Malaysia lacked nurses, given its ratio of one nurse per 300 patients, as opposed to the World Health Organisation’s optimum number, which is one nurse per 200 patients.
“We understand the issue. A moratorium is in place on the appointment of nurses but we are nevertheless applying for additional positions to be given for nurses.
“We hope that this will be approved within a reasonable period, when the economy improves,” he said after attending the International Nurses Day celebration at Hall D, Malaysia Agro Exposition Park, here yesterday.
The event was launched by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail.
Present were Health Ministry director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah, Health Ministry Nursing Division director Tumble Ngadiran @ Tomblow and Malaysian Nursing Association president Sharipah Asiah Syed Junid Aljunid.
On June 9 last year, Dr Dzulkefly said the human resources optimisation policy practised by the previous administration was to blame for the glut of medical graduates and nurses, who had yet to secure placements in government hospitals.
The policy, he said, meant there would be no additional new posts offered but on a trade-off or redeployment.
Dr Dzulkefly said that to tackle the issue of graduate nurses who had yet to receive placements in government hospitals, the ministry had reduced the number of nurse trainees from 2,274 in 2016 to 1,742 last year (a drop of 23 per cent).
Page 1 pic: Nurses taking a pledge at the International Nurses Day celebration in Serdang yesterday.