CONTRACT medical officers from the 2016-2019 batch under the UD41 grade, who have finished their housemanship, will be temporarily deployed to health facilities in critical need, according to a letter by the Health Ministry.

Doctors were told not to wait until matters related to their permanent posting or contract appointments are sorted and to report to the designated state health departments today.

The letter dated July 7, sighted by The Malaysian Insight, bore the signature of the ministry’s human resources division secretary Zainal Alhakab Seman.

“As you may be aware, grade UD41 contract medical officers (from the) 2016-2019 (batch) who have completed housemanship and are fully registered will receive a new placement without waiting for matters related to permanent placement or contract to be completed,” he said.

He added that the ministry had decided to mobilise the doctors to health facilities with a critical manpower crunch as part of efforts to contain the Covid-19 virus.

Those who report to duty today will have to serve until January 7, 2022, while the service term for those who begin on July 15 will end on January 14, 2022.

The officers will then have to report to the state health department once their service term ends.

Current head of departments were also instructed to conduct the necessary clearance due diligence for the outgoing officer.

They were also told to conduct the necessary process related to the admission to duty.

On a separate note, sources close to the development said that the instruction has only been given to the Health Ministry’s facilities, and those attached to teaching hospitals have yet to receive such orders.

A source revealed that more doctors will be deployed to the Malaysia Agro Exposition Park (Maeps) Covid-19 quarantine and low-risk quarantine centre (PKRC) 2.0 in Serdang, which has been seriously overstretched.

Health Minister Dr Adham Baba said in a statement earlier that the has dispatched 110 healthcare personnel comprising 75 medical officers, paramedics and drivers from Kedah, Perak and Terengganu, as well as 43 medical officers from Klang Valley hospitals to Maeps PKRC 2.0 for six months starting today.

The contract doctor system was first introduced in 2016 as an initial solution to the delayed placement of house officers.

Upon joining government service, the junior doctors are given a five-year contract package that consists of a three-year contract with an option of a two-year extension.

However, out of 23,077 contract doctors since 2016, only 789 have been given permanent positions in public healthcare.

In recent weeks, contract doctors had urged the ministry to absorb them into permanent service.

As a result, on Tuesday, the ministry issued a circular stating existing contract doctors will be offered reappointment on a contract basis as medical officers from December 5, 2021 to December 4, 2022.

They are now being rerouted to the Covid-19 critical healthcare facilities. – July 8, 2021.