Solution For Parallel Pathway Specialists By Mid May Says Senator

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 Senator Dr RA Lingeshwaran says health minister Dzulkefly Ahmad had given this assurance at a meeting with GPs and nurses in Penang.
Health minister Dzulkefly Ahmad being greeted by Senator Dr RA Lingeshwaran at a meeting in Penang today. (Facebook pic)PETALING JAYA: Parallel pathway specialists have been given an assurance by the health minister that their struggle to be listed in the National Specialist Register will be resolved by the middle of this month, according to Senator Dr RA Lingeshwaran
Lingeshwaran, who met health minister Dzulkefly Ahmad together with representatives of the Penang Private Practitioners Association and the Malayan Nurses Union today, said the minister had given a commitment on the deadline.
“We emphasised the urgent need for the ministerial order to enable (the registration of) a few hundred specialists who got their qualifications via the ministry-approved and sponsored parallel pathway programme, whose services are sorely needed by public hospitals,” he told FMT.
Dzulkefly confirmed the matter when contacted by FMT.
Lingeshwaran, a former director of Sungai Bakap Hospital in Penang, said amendments to the Medical Act, to recognise these specialist degrees and include them in the Malaysian Medical Council (MMC) list, were passed and gazetted about six months ago.
He said he also informed the minister that a group of specialists who had sued the MMC had now instructed their lawyers to get an order to compel the council to register them.
“The minister agreed with our concern and gave a commitment that it will be settled by the middle of this month. It’s a waste not to register them when the nation is in dire need of the specialists,” he said.
Lingeshwaran said he also discussed the price display order for general practitioners (GPs), and obtained an assurance from Dzulkefly that no fines will be issued in the next three months. “He also promised to amend the Seventh Schedule as soon as possible to balance out the costs borne by GPs,” he said.
Lingeshwaran urged private practitioners not to resort to any form of action that could jeopardise national healthcare as patients might be swarming government hospitals and clinics if there is a strike by GPs.
“We hope they will put all action plans on hold until the ministry reviews their consultation fee schedule which is a major concern among them. The minister has promised to revise the Seventh Schedule of the medical Act to resolve this soon,” he said. - FMT

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