PETALING JAYA: With the Health Ministry focusing its efforts on the Covid-19 pandemic since early this year, it is inevitable that other more benign medical conditions are being placed on the back-burner.
In fact, a new modelling study by a group of surgeons and anaesthetists from various countries found the overall surgery cancellation rate in Malaysia was 70.9% since the start of the pandemic.
Globally, the group, CovidSurg Collaborative, projected that over 28 million elective surgeries could be cancelled or postponed this year, leading to a more lengthy wait for patients.
Local health experts acknowledged that there is an increased backlog in elective surgeries in hospitals nationwide, which they said needed to be addressed as soon as possible, particularly as the country has eased more restrictions.
Former deputy health minister Dr Lee Boon Chye said the majority of postponed surgeries involved those scheduled for the first six weeks of the movement control order (MCO) between March and April, and that services are now picking up.
According to the cardiologist, one way to reduce the waiting list is to outsource certain services to the private sector or even universities that have the necessary facilities.
“During my time as deputy minister, we discussed the possibility of outsourcing bypass surgeries to universities. Currently, the waiting takes more than a year, it’s unacceptable,” he told theSun yesterday.
Lee said it also incumbent upon the government to retain all existing contract healthcare workers who were hired temporarily to assist in dealing with the Covid-19 outbreak, and that it would be “silly” not to.
He said these workers could be trained specifically to handle the pandemic, while others frontliners could refocus on pending health issues, including the postponed surgeries.
Lee’s view on the shortage of personnel was shared by Malaysian Medical Association president Dr N. Ganabaskaran, who said additional positions would improve efficiency in healthcare delivery.
Additionally, it will also shorten waiting time for appointments and reduce congestion in the system, he said when contacted.
Ganabaskaran added while all urgent cases requiring immediate surgery had proceeded even during MCO, less urgent cases that were postponed are being rescheduled.
“Some minor delays can be expected due to the postponements but overall the situation is reported to be manageable,” he said.
Meanwhile, Thomson Hospital Kota Damansara head of emergency services Dr Mohamed Al-Hadi Mohamed Razhi said it was vital for the government to come up with a recovery plan to safely restore elective surgeries soonest.
Among others, he suggested the operating hours of operation theatres be extended from 5pm currently to late night, and to have elective surgery slots during the weekend, too.
“This way, I am confident the backlogs can be cleared. The only issue is we will need more manpower, not only surgeons, but the support staff as well,” he told theSun.
To address this, Al-Hadi proposed that the Health Ministry mobilise its staff from other locations and to offer “locum” rate to those who agree to put in an extra shift.
“At this point, I don’t think there is a need to hire more staff. What we need is proper planning by the ministry.”
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