FOR a while now, we have been watching doctors grow increasingly frustrated with a system that seems to be failing them. From the sidelines, it’s easy to think that this has nothing to do with us non-medical folks.
In reality though, we are the ones with the most to lose. The doctors in government service are overworked in a system that doesn’t know how to make room for more, and an oversupply due to the mushrooming of approved medical colleges is worsening the situation.
Topping it off is a budget issue that’s resulted in contract workers, doctors who are floating because they cannot be permanently placed in any department. The effects of this glut are manifold, starting with the simple idea that tired doctors equals greater risk to patients.
Doctors placed on contract are in essence unable to contribute permanently to the long-term growth and progress of the medical field in Malaysia. They cannot apply for specialisation programmes or further their studies, and can be threatened with termination in a system that still has room to improve when it comes to fairness and merit.
The result of this floating phenomenon is that full-time doctors are overworked. Whether it’s an endless procedure list or a full ward of patients, doctors sometimes function on one hour of sleep before having to face a new day. Thus it can only be frustrating that there are willing hands waiting to work, stopped only by the system.
A long-term effect of this contract issue is also the potential for an elitist culture to develop among medical practitioners. Contract staff cannot apply for specialisation programmes, which means the gap between medical officer and specialist will only widen further.
Another contributing factor to the budget issues faced by the Health Ministry is that in our quest to make Malaysia’s healthcare system one of the world’s most accessible, we have unwittingly spoiled our citizens.
Years of easy, crazily affordable access to healthcare has turned us into entitled patients instead of grateful ones. We punch medical assistants or post rants when we feel we aren’t getting what we deserve, spurred on by others just happy to see criticism of the government sector, warranted or not.
We pay a mere one ringgit to see a doctor, or five ringgit at a specialist clinic, then proceed to complain when services are slow. We misplace our prescribed medication or let them expire without guilt because we know that forking out one more ringgit will get us new stock.
We complain on social media when we have to wait three months for a non-critical scan, and then praise the one helpful staff member who listened to our desperate cries and moved us up the line. What we forget, in our fog of selfishness, is that we have just unfairly moved everyone else down the line.
And doctors are people too. If complete fatigue can justify us turning into grumpy grouches, it’s unfair of us to expect doctors to function at optimum with a smile on their faces if they are burnt out.
The perceived lack of political will to curb this growing problem is unfortunate, but enough solutions have been mooted for the government and industry to act. We have to think long-term, and stop putting plasters over festering wounds.
It is our responsibility to stay aware and hold the relevant ministries and practitioners accountable so that our healthcare industry can be known not just for accessibility, but for quality and fair treatment of its workers. After all, we are the ones who will benefit the most.
Comments: letters@thesundaily.com
