Mentoring medical officers to be specialists
THE government must come up with a more comprehensive career path for medical officers (MO) to become specialists in their chosen fields. But this must be pragmatic and workable for all the stakeholders, i.e the MOs, specialist trainers and hospital administration, and does not compromise the standard or quality of the specialists.
A medical officer who is training under a specialist/consultant trainer must stay with his/her mentor for at least three years before he or she is recommended to pursue a masters programme.
If, in the midst of training, the mentor is transferred or promoted, the mentee must follow the mentor to the new place so that there is
continuity of training. The mentor is the best person to select deserving mentee(s) to follow him/her if such a situation arises.
This three years’ on-the-ground training in government hospitals is the best practical exposure that aspiring MOs can get to complement their masters programme in their respective fields. This time frame would also allow the specialist trainer (mentor) to pick the best and most deserving candidates to do the masters programme. Putting favouritism aside, the director of the hospital administration can serve as a check and balance.
The present system of selecting MOs to further their masters programme leaves much to be desired.
Every year, MOs who aspire to be specialists have to go to Kuala Lumpur to sit for and pass an examination that is highly theory-based. Most MOs cannot find enough time to study due to pressure of work.
Many have sat for the examination and failed a number of times, giving rise to frustration and disillusionment, which is not good for the hospital environment and medical fraternity.
Most masters programme courses span a period of three to four years. During this time, apart from further practical training, the MOs have plenty of time to brush up their theoretical knowledge.
If the PhD programmes in most
universities can be done under the supervision of a few academic staff of the university, I don’t see any issue in using the mentor-mentee system to select potential candidates for the medical masters programme.
The mentor-mentee system will open more doors and career pathways for MOs to improve themselves and to meet the acute shortage of specialist doctors in the public health service. After becoming specialists, they should be bonded for a longer period so that there will not be a shortage of specialists in the public health system.
KHOO KOK HEONG Bukit Gelugor, Pulau Pinang