one of the msian cabinet minister...

Good day!!!!

Hallooooooooooooo


Last week I commented to someone that the current Health Minister seems to be doing his job. Not like the previous one, Datuk Chua Jui Meng didn't (I kinda like his approach of doing stuff), it's just that I feel Datuk Dr CHua Soi Lek really means business, he's acted on some of the things he said.

Read the Star today and read the comment written by VK Chin... thought to meself... Hey!!! Kewl! *ok from now on I'll pay more attention to that column*
Check out VK Chin's article below.....
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Friday July 1, 2005-- Getting our healthcare into shape,V.K.CHIN

HEALTH Minister Datuk Dr Chua Soi Lek and his officials have been working overtime in putting the public healthcare sector into shape in order to better serve the public.

The public should be able to notice the changes very soon, especially in getting speedier treatment at general hospitals and government clinics. So far, changes have been made to improve the infrastructure and upgrade existing facilities.

The next move is for the ministry to look into the manpower side to improve healthcare services for the public.

In order to do this, Dr Chua must find ways to get more doctors to perform clinical duties, particularly those in charge of managing the hospitals and other health centres.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi announced on Tuesday the setting up of a separate scheme to be known as the hospital administration service to relieve doctors of such non-clinical functions.

The new service will be run by experienced medical officers and nurses with the required years of service in this field. Currently, all hospital directors or state medical directors are doctors who have to stop doing clinical work to perform administrative duties.

There is a general belief that only doctors, or those who are specially trained for this task, are qualified to do the work, as non-medical civil servants are deemed – and quite rightly so – unsuitable for such assignments.

However, it is a real waste of a doctor's training, which is to save lives and cure the sick, to be looking at files and attending meetings instead.

As being a hospital or state medical director is a promotion, it is normal that those given the new tasks will accept them, the pay and allowances of medical officers and specialists being what they are.

Under the present system, the ministry may be losing a good doctor but getting a mediocre administrator instead, which is really a poor exchange where the Government and public are concerned.

What the Government wants is that doctors do what they are trained to do; and that is to spend all their time treating the sick, especially those from the lower-income group and the hardcore poor.

This is of course the right decision for the Government to take and, fortunately, it has followed up with an important change in its new policy. And the good news is that doctors will continue to get promotions despite the changes.

Many government doctors are quite dedicated to their work and they like to continue to serve. But the main grouses are not merely financial, but that there are just insufficient doctors to look after so many patients, especially at certain hospitals.

This has put a tremendous strain on them and is affecting their dealings with their patients.
With the new hospital management service, another 100 or more doctors and specialists will be available to help out, thus reducing the shortage.

Hopefully, the recent increases in allowances will help prevent some of those wishing to join the private sector on completion of their three-year compulsory service from leaving the service.
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Wishing Datuk Dr Chua all the best in performing his duties, who knows where it'll get him to (in terms of party politics and where he'll go next in the Cabinet)
For now.... Hats to you!!! :))