Professors’ group sees no need to amend Medical Act

KUALA LUMPUR: There is no need to amend the Medical Act 1971 to address the shortage of specialists, said the Group of Professors of Health and Medicine.

Its head, Professor Dr Noor Hassim Ismail, said the government should instead focus on helping parallel pathway programme (PPP) graduates register as specialists.

He said existing laws allowed them to be absorbed into the local programme through the credit transfer process or curriculum mapping.

After undergoing training, they would be registered with the Malaysian Qualification Registrar (MQR) and also be eligible to be registered as a specialist in the Malaysian Medical Council’s (MMC) specialist register, he said.

“For trainees who are still in the study system, they can be transferred to a local university programme through the same process.

“It is apparent that the dilemma faced by these graduates of parallel pathway can be resolved without the need to amending the act,” he said in a statement.

The group, he said, was unclear about the merits of amending the act as existing laws and procedures could be used to resolve the issue.

“We are concerned with the predicament of trainees and graduates of parallel pathway programmes run here in Malaysia.

“They are the victims. They have joined a training programme that awards a qualification that does not allow them to be registered in the MMC’s specialist register.”

Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad was reported as saying that the proposed amendments sought to address the gap between the PPP and local Master in Medicine programmes.

This is to ensure that medical specialists who completed their training under the former programmes would be registered and recognised.