A Warisan assemblyman has urged the Sabah government and the Health Ministry to introduce immediate measures to address the state’s worsening shortage of doctors, warning that medical officers working up to 72 consecutive hours and patients facing delays in treatment cannot afford to wait until February next year for reinforcements.
Luyang assemblyman Samuel Wong said the proposed special recruitment exercise to fill 750 permanent medical officer vacancies across Sabah and Sarawak, with successful candidates expected to report for duty on Feb 15, 2027, would offer little relief to hospitals already struggling with manpower shortages.
He said the state government and the Federal Health Ministry must treat the situation as an emergency rather than rely on recruitment exercises with delayed implementation.
“Doctors cannot postpone exhaustion, and patients cannot postpone illness until the Government’s recruitment calendar catches up,” he said.
Samuel cited Ranau Hospital as an example of the worsening situation, saying 11 of its 19 medical officers had been transferred out following the latest permanent appointment exercise, while only one of seven designated replacements from outside Sabah reportedly turned up.
He said the shortage was not limited to district hospitals, with major government hospitals in Kota Kinabalu also facing increasing pressure to maintain services amid rising patient demand.
According to the Sabah State Health Department, the latest recruitment exercise has left the state with an estimated shortfall of 245 medical officers, with 67 per cent of replacement candidates from outside Sabah failing to report for duty.
Samuel questioned why existing medical officers had been transferred before sufficient replacements were available, calling on the state government and Health Ministry to explain the decisions and their consequences.
He also expressed concern over reports by health news portal CodeBlue that some doctors were working between 48 and 72 consecutive hours with inadequate rest.
“Doctors are human beings, not machines. No responsible government should allow extraordinary personal sacrifice to become the normal way of keeping essential hospital services running,” he said, warning that excessive working hours could compromise patient safety.
Samuel said he and his Warisan colleagues had repeatedly highlighted Sabah’s healthcare manpower problems over the past two years, calling for stronger recruitment measures, retention incentives and the development of a larger local medical workforce.
He pointed out that State Health Minister Julita Mojungki had acknowledged Sabah’s serious doctor shortage in April, followed by warnings from the Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) in October that the situation was approaching breaking point.
Samuel questioned what concrete measures the GRS government had implemented since the problem was publicly acknowledged.
He called on the state health minister to explain the steps taken, the funding committed and the improvements achieved.
Among the immediate measures he proposed were a comprehensive assessment of hospitals facing critical shortages, temporary rotational deployments of medical officers from Peninsular Malaysia and ensuring replacement doctors report for duty before existing personnel are transferred.
He also called for better accommodation, relocation assistance and targeted incentives to attract doctors to understaffed hospitals, alongside safer working arrangements to prevent excessive consecutive working hours.
In the longer term, Samuel urged the government to revive the percentage-based Regional Incentive Payment (BIW), introduce additional state-funded incentives and strengthen efforts to train and retain more Sabahan doctors and specialists.
While acknowledging that federal authorities control medical appointments and postings, he said this should not absolve the state government of responsibility.
“GRS may not control federal doctor postings, but it cannot use that as an excuse for inaction. The State Government has a responsibility to fight for Sabah’s healthcare needs and ensure urgent intervention reaches hospitals where it is needed most,” he said.
Samuel said the shortage would disproportionately affect lower-income families who depend on government hospitals for affordable healthcare, potentially resulting in longer waiting times and delayed treatment.
“Sabahans have heard enough assurances and recruitment announcements. What they need now is action.
“Doctors are exhausted. Hospitals are struggling. Patients are waiting. This is no longer a problem that can be pushed to tomorrow or postponed until February next year,” he said.
