THE idea that junior doctors need to be “ragged” to grow resilient is unacceptable and no excuse for bullying, health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said today.

“We are aware that in training to become a doctor, one needs determination and has to be resilient throughout the two-year houseman period. But the way we train them should not involve any bullying or harassment.

“We cannot accept harassment, sexual exploitation, or abuse,” he said at the Sungai Buloh Hospital today.

He said the culture of bullying trainee doctors must be eradicated at once.

Noor Hisham said the Health Ministry would work with the independent healthcare work culture improvement task force to come out with guidelines and measures to eliminate bullying in government hospitals.

This includes setting up a system for whistleblowing, he said.

“The system is already there but we want to enhance it. Among them are ways to lodge reports so that whistleblowers are protected.” – May 14, 2022.