PETALING JAYA: A senator has raised concerns about Singapore recruiting Malaysian doctors at a hotel, citing the bold move as worsening the brain drain in the healthcare sector.
Senator Dr RA Lingeshwaran said the job advertisement posted by Malaysia’s neighbouring country, offering an annual salary of RM385,000 in addition to other perks, would undoubtedly attract more local healthcare staff, according to Free Malaysia Today.
The positions offered by Singapore’s healthcare sector also include an accommodation allowance, insurance, and other benefits such as an on-call allowance.
Moreover, candidates only need three years of experience to qualify.
Lingeshwaran, a former director of Sungai Bakap Hospital, also urged the Ministry of Health to take Singapore’s move seriously, as it could further impact Malaysia’s already strained healthcare sector.
His comments come after Singapore’s Ministry of Health is planning a direct recruitment of Malaysian healthcare workers by interviewing them at a hotel in Kuala Lumpur next month, which has since gained traction all over social media.
“What’s more telling is Singapore’s decision to open it to all medical degree holders without having to sit for an examination.
“Previously, they only recruited medical graduates from Universiti Malaya (UM) and Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) directly.
“I think this will open the floodgates as the costliest expenditure in Singapore, which is accommodation, will be covered. The comments on social media by doctors are an indication that we are going to lose our medical brains,” he was quoted as saying.
The job posting also states that doctors from University Malaya and University Kebangsaan Malaysia may apply for the position of medical officer, while healthcare staff from other universities will be designated as clinical associates, with a similar remuneration package.
Lingeshwaran added that a Malaysian medical officer with three years of experience typically earns up to RM6,000 a month, or RM72,000 annually.
He also revealed that 40% of 105 medical students who graduated from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and University College Dublin Malaysia Campus in Penang have applied for internships in the United Kingdom or Ireland.
“They are leaving because the Malaysian system provides them with no certainty and support for their future. The unresolved contract doctor policy, lack of permanent positions, limited career progression and poor work-life balance are driving them away,” Lingeshwaran was also quoted as saying.
In December 2024, Minister of Health Datuk Seri Dzulkefly Ahmad reportedly estimated that a total of 6,417 permanent and contract medical officers had resigned between 2019 and 2023.
“The brain drain is not a drip any more, it is now a wave. We need urgent structural reforms to retain our talent, value their service, and give them a future worth staying for,” he added.
