Senior medical specialist in distress

I AM a senior specialist practising in one of the busiest hospitals in the country. I'm in my 10th year of service as a specialist and 19th year of service as a doctor.

The introduction of "Sistem Saraan Baru Perkhidmatan Awam" or SBPA has been unfair to me and other senior specialists and consultants who are stuck at maximum salary scale in the UD54 post.

First, based on the SBPA salary adjustment formula, I and many other senior specialists will see an increment of 3.9% from our previous scale of P1T8 (Sistem Saraan Malaysia) to UD1-6 T1 scale (SBPA scale).

However, a different formula is used for salary adjustment of junior specialists that does not make any sense.
Ironically, these junior specialists were automatically promoted in 2010 through a "time-based" promotion exercise. Junior specialists who are holding the UD54 post will be paid the same salary as senior specialists and consultants in SBPA.

Some of these junior specialists were my former house officers and medical officers when I was a specialist. As an example, a junior specialist who holds a UD54 post in my department draws a salary of RM5,465.42 (P1T2). After SBPA is implemented on Jan 1, his or her salary is increased by 30.1% to a scale of UD1-6 T1.

According to media reports and PSD, civil servants were supposed to enjoy an increase of 7-13% in pay rise but how do you explain the big jump for junior specialists? Isn't this unfair to senior specialists and consultants? I understand that those in JUSA post will also enjoy a big increase in pay rise and thus, making us a breed that is easily dismissed, expendable and easily forgotten.

Today, with the introduction of SBPA, we will all be lumped together and thus, senior ones like me will lose our years of service. I do not know if anyone realises that we are the ones who perform the bulk of specialist work, train the junior specialists, train the medical officers, Masters candidates and house officers, involved in various ISO and accreditation activities and come up with ideas that benefit the department and hospitals in general.

We also perform activities that fulfil Key Performance Indexes (KPI) and make sure our services satisfy our customers. With the implementation of SBPA, it makes us feel as if, all our services are unappreciated.

I also noted that there has been no promotion exercise at all for us clinicians in 2011. Most senior specialists and consultants can't imagine what is in store for them after looking at such unfair practices in salary adjustment. I believe that the lack of proper career development paths that we see in SBPA will compel more senior specialists to leave government service.

As a senior specialist, I have sacrificed my precious time to gain knowledge and skills and have continued to serve the Health Ministry diligently. I hope the higher authorities including the ministry will look into our plight and save whatever little dignity that is left of us.

Doctor
Shah Alam