KUALA LUMPUR: A total of 3,386 contract medical officers had resigned over a period of four years from 2017 to 2022, Dr Zaliha Mustafa told the Dewan Rakyat.

Of the figure, the bulk of resignations took place last year, where 1,354 out of 29,548 medical officers left their respective jobs, the Health Minister said.

Dr Zaliha said 758 out of 26,303 contract medical officers resigned in 2021, while 511 left their jobs in 2020 out of a total of 22,298 contract medical officers.

In 2019, Dr Zaliha said 475 out of 17,183 had quit their jobs and in 2018, there were 168 resignations out of a total of 11,044 contract medical officers.

In 2017, only 110 contract medical officers resigned, she added.

The resignation figures revealed by Dr Zaliha showed a steady rise since 2017.

According to Dr Zaliha, among the possible reasons for resignation were lucrative job offers from the private sector, some wanting to open their own clinics, and others who wanted to either further their studies or migrate to another country.

“Some also stated that their resignation was due to personal reasons and health issues, including mental stress,” Dr Zaliha said during her winding-up speech on the motion of thanks to the Royal Address in Parliament on Thursday (Feb 23).

Meanwhile, 76,381 medical officers from various government healthcare services have gone through a mental health screening initiative by the ministry, and it was found that 3.35% suffered from stress, anxiety and depression.

“The Health Ministry acknowledges that long work hours can affect mental health issues, which could be due to various psychological factors, including failure to achieve work/life balance,” said Dr Zaliha.

She also said the Health Ministry formed a special team in May last year to improve the work culture of healthcare services.

At the same time, Dr Zaliha said measures were being planned by the state health departments and government hospitals to address issues of being overworked and long working hours.

“For example, when a disease outbreak happens, medical officers will be swapped from other facilities to assist in facing shortages in manpower.

“The Health Ministry is empathetic towards the various issues affecting Health Ministry medical officers, because they are our frontliners,” said Dr Zaliha.

She also said the Health Ministry has made efforts to create a conducive ecosystem at its healthcare facilities to address issues of doctors being away from their spouses.

“The Health Ministry is looking at applications of transfers by medical officers and transfers happen very frequently, four times or sometimes more, every year,” added Dr Zaliha.

In March last year, former health minister Khairy Jamaluddin said that 2,032 contract medical officers had quit from 2017 to 2021.

https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2023/02/23/nearly-3400-contract-mos-quit-since-2017-with-1354-resigning-in-2022-says-health-minister