KUALA LUMPUR: The government will focus on efforts to produce more specialists in primary healthcare said Health Minister Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad.
He said this was in line with the importance to ensure preventive medicine which could be implemented effectively.
Dr Dzulkefly also said to realise this, more funds would be allocated for primary care and preventive medicine as needed by family medicine practice.
“The specialists come from those who have a Master in Family Medicine such as the Royal College of General Practitioners.
“The government is always striving to provide quality, affordable and safe medical services,” he said during a question-and-answer session at the Dewan Rakyat today.
Dr Dzulkefly was responding to a question by Datuk Halimah Mohamed Sadique (BN-Kota Tinggi) on whether the ministry would increase the use of the latest healthcare applications and technology and also to address the shortage of specialists.
He further reiterated that the government would not ignore the use of health technology. However, this would depend on the type of illnesses especially cancer.
“The ministry will invest in health technology and the latest findings on technology to detect cancer,” he said.
To increase the number of medical specialists, various steps were taken including raising the Hadiah Latihan Persekutuan sponsorship slot to encourage medical officers to undergo specialist training according to their respective fields.
“It includes re-appointing retired specialists and renewal of contracts for them to return to the ministry, to get specialists from the private sector and encourage specialists living abroad to return home,” said Dr Dzulkefly.