Almost 3-4 years ago I predicted that there will come a time where HO post will be given under contract. In August last year, I again predicted and heard rumours that HO post may be give under contract, after which you need to apply for a permanent MO post. There were even a suggestion than that en exit exam is being considered after housemanship. Well, looks like once again my prediction may become a reality soon.
TheStar reported today that MOH is waiting for green light from the cabinet for creation of temporary HO post. This basically means the HO post will be given under contract. What happens after housemanship? It basically means that you will need to reapply for a permanent post as a MO. There are pros and cons in this system. Firstly, how do SPA or MOH decide on who will receive permanent post and who will receive contract post? I presume JPA scholars/government scholars might be given preference for permanent post as the contract guarantees a bond with the government. Secondly, how do you assess who will get permanent MO post after the contract expires? This is where the said exit exam may come into force. BTW, 300 contract post were created this year for dental graduates as reported by DG and written by me in March 2016.
On the other hand, it will keep all HOs on their toes. If you don’t complete your housemanship in 2 years (usual duration of any contract post), you may not be able to continue the contract. It is also easier to terminate HOs who are missing in action. If you perform badly during housemanship, you are likely to have a lesser chance of getting a permanent MO post. Be also aware that if you do not get a MO post in government, you have almost zero chance of pursuing post-graduate education.
As i had always said, there is no such thing as job security in medicine anymore. It is considered as just like another job but medicine is far more complicated than any other jobs out there. Without housemanship, no full registration. Without full registration, you can’t practise as a doctor etc etc.
What’s next ? A reduction in compulsory service from 4 years to 2 years ? Open clinic after housemanship? Another of my prediction which may come into reality. Then we may have a lot of doctors with apparent ” license to kill”……………
Temporary posts can reduce waiting time for medical grads
KUALA LUMPUR: There is good news for medical students who will be graduating soon as they may not have to wait too long before being offered a job.
The Health Ministry is in the final stages of implementing a plan to introduce temporary posts for medical graduates who face a long wait to do housemanship.
Its deputy director-general (medical) Datuk Dr Jeyaindran Sinnadurai said the rigidity of the current system did not allow the ministry to offer permanent positions to more people as they serve their housemanship.
The plan for temporary posts, he said, needed the Cabinet approval before it could be introduced as “we have to ensure that it is fair to all and no one is marginalised”.
On whether the ministry can justify the number, he said “yes” as it had developed many new services.
“The workload has increased, so we need those numbers to deliver care to the public.
“Presently, we take in about 4,500 house officers annually on permanent posts and upon completing their housemanship, they become permanent medical officers,” he told The Star after chairing a lecture at Hospital Kuala Lumpur on Thursday.
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The ability of our super dr.pagavalan to predict the future is beyond imagination, as I always found myself reading the intoduction with “a few years ago I predicted so and so and the link is here and here.” I would’ve given you an A+ for creativity if this was an essay.
Thank John, can you also come up with your own predictions? Thanks. I’m sure if they’re accurate enough you’d have thousands of followers too.. Cheers
Doesn’t take a solution to justify a fact, eh? Besides, neither does John care a damn about followers, good try mate, not this time though 😉
Must be certain ‘practitioners’ who ignored/ failed to heed the wise advices not to pursue this route for the wrong reasons.. Bitters.. And sandwich 😉
What dr paga said has come true and I for one agree with his foresight. You’d do well to read this blog if you are interested in practicing medicine in Malaysia.
What about those JPA scholars who perform badly during housemanship? would SPA/MOH turn a blind eye on their undercompetence merely because they are tied to the gov? if it’s really so, it would not be a fair system. Don’t forget some students are under loan, hence they get to choose to either pay off the debt and be free, or they can choose to be tied to secure a permanent post to undermine their poor performance.
They wil likely offered admin post or in other gov sector. Some Drs who performed badly as HO did wonder job as admin
What about those non JPA scholars who perform badly?? once you are in the government, its hard to fire you lah. Unless you choose to leave the government yourself
Yes, that is the problem in civil service which I had mentioned many times before. Hopefully this contract post can kick out some of them
At least they get to work in in MOH ASAP rather than staying at home for months till God knows when they are gainfully employed.Hoping for more good news
The number of contract post is still not going to be enough. To be frank , you may end up jobless after contract HO which can be worst .
LOOKING FOR SOME MORE GOOD NEWS.HONESTLY THERE ISNT ANY MORE GOOD NEWS FOR MEDICAL GRADUATES.
THE CURRENT CONTRACT JOBS IS BENEFICIAL TO THE GOVERNMENT.
AT THE END OF THE CONTRACT PERIOD,GOOD OR BAD OR UGLY ,YOU NEED TO LEAVE,NO COMPASSIONATE ISSUES.
REEMPLOYMENT WILL BE AT THE DISCRETION OF THE GOVT.NOT SURE WHEN AND WHERE .POSSIBLE THAT THE PAY MAY DROP AS COMPETITION IS STIFF.
This is true Dr Paga. There is a case in my city where a doctor who barely finished a year in district came back and opened up his own clinic. He performed a circumcision despite not knowing proper technique and it was complicated with excessive hemorrhage that required an amputation of the penis. This will happen more frequently seeing that more and more incompetent doctors are allowed to practice in our Malaysia Boleh land.
Dear ALL,
Are there any way that the government/JPA department could be notified of students who ‘escape’ from returning to Malaysia to serve their bonds? A lot of sponsored students have been silently going under the radar to avoid going back to Malaysia..
MARA sponsors are not bonded. JPA yes. Previously it is easy to escape but now they do have your name in their list. They will go after the guarantors. They can even not renew your passport if you don’t payup. From this year, all JPA scholarship are convertible. If you don’t work with government it is considered loan.
I see, thanks for the tip.
This is about JPA students, I was surprised when I heard about the news and I don’t think that it is fair at all especially to those who came back to Malaysia to serve the country (as one should!).
I also heard that my juniors had been deliberately failing their interview of hopes that the government will release them. It seems students these days are no longer grateful from the financial assistance and are trying to look for loopholes in the system.
Yes, that’s why i support the idea of scholarship for local education only. No need to send overseas except for courses not available locally.
Dear ALL,
Are there any way that the government/JPA department could be notified of students who ‘escape’ from returning to Malaysia to serve their bonds? A lot of sponsored students have been silently going under the radar to avoid going back to Malaysia..
yes, including non medical jpa sponsored students in us/ uk/oz/ nz as well
They all have the name list la. why are you so worried or really wanted them to come back? They will pay their penalty/fine anyway. If they come back, you wont have enough chance for placement either. LOL.
loll.. later if everyone comes back, then no placement for local grad also bising.. if you don’t want to stay overseas, or can’t secure a job there, no need to bising2 laa
Layman is right. You will hope that you are already on a specialty training programme before these people come back. I have friends overseas who are already completing their MRCPs within 2 years post grad. Too many people for too few specialty training spots If the government is smart, they will allow these people to train as specialist in other countries and then ask them to come back as consultants instead.
Hi Dr Pagalavan, being a foreigner (Singaporean)studying in Malaysia, what are the chances that I will get to practice here? As the authorities are not very clear about this matter. Also if i am married to a Malaysian citizen, does that change anything?
Based on current criteria, foreigners will not get any housemanship post, even if you are married to local. Please see the latest guideline released February 2016 at MOH website.
dr Paga, What do you think about family medicine speciality??? good future? too many? does private hospital provide post for family medicine spealist?
NO private hospital provide post for family physician . If you open clinic, at the moment, no difference than a normal GP.
when will the MOH abolish clinics without FMS certification??? in other countries, u are not even allowed to operate your own clinic without FMS specialty. Also, I saw some paediatrician or MRCP holder open their own clinic like a gp and gv wrong medication which supposedly treat that condition. LOL, esp skin lesion. eventually I found it is actually quite dangerous.
We are very far behind any developed countries.
http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2016/08/10/let-medical-grads-work-as-doctors-assistants/
What do you think Dr P? I personally feel they are trying to patch the hole rather than treating the underlying cause! Is the medical indemnity going to cover them in terms of lawsuit? This will be the first of its kind in the world!!Malaysia Boleh !!
agree, what about the pay? will there be salary for working as a doctor assistant? if no pay rest assured nobody would wanna spend their time doing free job unless their family can afford to continue feeding them
U get lawsuit as medical assistant too..u thought only MO get it ke? Lol
It will be illegal, as these graduates are not registered as medical practitioners. However, they can function as nurses or “medical students” observers. If a doctor allows them to function as doctors, the doctor is guilty of professional misconduct. So it will be a fine line there, and doctors can be putting themselves at risk. No medical indemnity insurance will cover these graduates, and they are not RMP.
It is a band aid proposal, and does not address the basic issue.
They can’t work as a medical assisstant if it involves making decision or doing procedures.
Dr, if i got offers from University Malaya and IMU-PMS to study medicine, which university should i choose to go? Which university is better in terms of quality and for housemanship and postgrad study in future? i need some advice from you, Dr…
If? You will need to be more specific. Do you have a scholarship? The IMU-PMS fees will be more than RM1 mil.
No brainer. Choose UM unless you plan to migrate.
Obviously UM but if you intend to migrate, then choose IMU-PMS
I second what Dr Paga and the rest suggest. UM is very reputable (despite current events surrounding its academic prowess).
Migration however is not easy. The transition from university to foundation doctor/houseman worldwide for an international medical graduate (in this context defined based on nationality and NOT where you graduated from) is very difficult. We saw this in the USA where Irish/British Nationality Doctors were forced to take up jobs in specialties like nephrology and infectious disease simply because there was only spaces for them there (and that was only after several attempts at applying!)
The situation is now similar in the UK. They’ve sped up training, meaning unless you’re on a continuos working visa (which requires reapplication every 2-3 years) you are at risk of not being able to permanently work in the UK (there are cooling off periods for visas). Locals have the luxury of being in and out of the workforce, pursuing degrees/diplomas/PhDs to help boost their competitive edge for their application interviews.. you on the other hand are forced to work to maintain your working visa. When it is interview time, which would you think would look better on paper.. a years experience working as an MO versus a years experience doing research (something they can pursue whilst locuming to earn the extra cash to support themselves.. so NO, they are not any poorer than you during that timespan).
So my advice, having studied and worked in the UK.. think carefully of your prospects.. things may change, understandably, as British doctors are refusing to work with the strikes and all.. and BREXIT events meaning less EU doctors posing as competition.. but the UK are adamant that their migration rates are still high.. and their current PM was head of the dept trying to cut down on migration before she rose to the top. I don’t think her priorities are going to change anytime soon.
As an IMU PMSian ( Uni of Glasgow) myself, please make sure you have 1.3 million ready. No 2- You can work in Scotland or Republic of Ireland or even Aussie/NZ. forget about London or Birmingham as it is oversubscribed. If you intend to work in Msia or Singapore please choose Singapore. They accept UM. Dont waste 1.3 million and come back to Msia. Thank you.
[…] my first post with the above topic , I mentioned about the government’s intention to introduce contract HO […]
If they implement contract HOs, how will they manage APCs? So those who do not get contracts are not able to renew their APCS? seeking your views on this sir.
At the moment APCs are issued based on place of practise. So, as long as you are practising somewhere, even as locum, you can get APC. However, soon you will need minimum CME points and indemnity insurance to renew your APC