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While lauding Health Ministry's extra posts move, MPS suggests 1:3 pharmacist-to-doctor ratio

KUALA LUMPUR: The Health Ministry's effort to increase pharmacist positions in the public sector would ensure continuity of care, more job opportunities and security for pharmacy graduates.

The Malaysian Pharmacists Society (MPS) president Amrahi Buang said this today while applauding Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin's announcement over the matter.

"MPS would like to thank YB (Khairy) and the cabinet for agreeing to this as this ensures a continuity of care as well as more job opportunities and security for our pharmacy graduates," he said in a statement.

Khairy had yesterday announced that the cabinet has approved the creation of 8,686 extra posts for medical, dental and pharmaceutical officers from 2022 to 2025.

The minister had said at least 1,500 permanent posts of medical officers, dental officers and pharmacists will be created in the Health Ministry every year beginning 2023 until 2025.

Amrahi, however, said the MPS felt the government should consider raising the number of the new permanent posts for pharmacists in a ratio of 1:3 with doctors.

He said this was because of the need in providing current and new pharmaceutical services for the benefit of patients in the country.

He said this in reference to the ministry's announcement that the cabinet had agreed to increase the number of permanent posts for pharmacists in the public sector to 300 for the year 2022.

Amrahi further said it fully supports the introduction of a competency examination to assess the quality of our graduates in which only the best can qualify for the permanent posts.

"We hope this exam would assess both knowledge and soft skills which will translate into more consistent selection of candidates for the posts," he added.

Khairy had announced that 4,186 additional permanent posts will be created in the ministry in 2022, which covers the appointment of a total of 3,586 medical officers, 300 dental and 300 pharmaceutical officers.

In addition, he said the cabinet has also agreed that a total of 800 permanent positions for physicians and 70 spots for dentists be created in the ministry yearly starting in 2023 to cover the output of permanent physicians in health facilities under the ministry.

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