Is this a surprise?
Two private varsities watched for producing poor quality docs
PUTRAJAYA (Jan 18, 2007): Two private universities are being watched by the Health Ministry over complaints that they produced poor quality doctors.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek said the complaints were not only on this aspect but also on the fact that they were training too many medical students and not sticking to the fixed teacher-to-student ratio.
He said the fixed ratio is 1:6 or 1:8 but the universities concerned used a 1:20 ratio.
“There are complaints of doctors produced by these universities were not as good as they should be.
“Universiti Malaya (UM) which set up its medical faculty a long time ago, only produces 200 medical officers a year but these two universities produce 300 although they were set up about 10 years ago,” he told reporters after attending a dialogue with students from UM, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) and Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) here today.
Bernama quoated Chua as saying that seven private universities were offering medical courses and the government was collecting particulars on them.
If the universities were found to have contravened regulations, action could be taken against them, including warning them or their duration of courses would not be extended, he said.
First we had only 3 universities that offered medical education. At that time, the quality of medical education was excellent and impressive. This was going on for years. Then over the last decade, we saw many medical universities coming up. They grew so rapidly and blatantly, that medical education in the 3 main universities were affected. Senior clinicians left to the new institutions in view of promotion. So rampant it was, that professors and associate professors were given to those without caliber. There was no control as many reaped profits from medical education. Everything became worse when political parties decided to have one each by their own — just to widen racial differances. As more medical universities sprout, the countries leading university were going through brain drain so severe that some department that were once a pride of the nation were now a laughing stock. As medical universities sprout, more and more younger fresh graduates became lectures without the much needed experience. Medical students have now lost great teachers thus losing idols that moulded many older doctors to achieve what is expectedly excellent quality. With the loss of idols or role models, the quest for quality dropped as now their role models were fresh graduates from masters or membership examinations joining these institution to attain a better pay, name and better future prospect in private. Nobody cared for the developement of quality medical students - very few did! Many realised the importance of this institutions as a stepping stone to the private sector.
So is this all a surprise? Well I am surprised that it took them this long to realise that there is no quality control in Malaysia in anything. Everything is set for auto-run mode. For such a small country like Malaysia, we have too many medical universities. Quantity is of importance for the government because quantity is money not quality! Why? Because the public is such a tolerant one that we Malaysians will accept anything thrown to us whether it is of quality or otherwise! The general public is happy that many are passing exams and many get the chance to go to university especially many are able to do medicine. Well the truth is, the passing mark and standards have been brought so low that one will still pass his physics or biology by getting 20/100. The general student now who enters university are becoming ill-prepared for university-like structure and are far below par. Many senior lecturers in these universiy will agree with this. To make things worse the education ministry and universities then revise their syllabus to make it easier and lighter to allow many more to pass. Noticed the use of many rather than better.
The government has plenty to do. As many of my previous post, the public must start to rise and work together to voice their need for not just mediocre service but excellent service and the government must better up with a fairer system then the present nonsense system (SSM).
January 20th, 2007 at 3:28 am
Hear! Hear! This is the same story from my time! So what is new. The system will continue to go down as long as we have the idiotic bunch who prefer ‘many’ to better(quality) so as to have their own kind in the coveted depts like medicine, engineering etc. Better stop writing. I might get sued like the bloggers Jeffooi and RockyBru. Malaysia again never fail to make headlines round the world for nonsensical issues. Fantastic country but with leaders who possess third world mentality! You should make a good politician! I have said this many times bro, send your article to the papers. Let us see this article printed!:-)
January 21st, 2007 at 6:24 pm
sis I dont see a slot for letter to editor!
January 22nd, 2007 at 12:32 am
go to staronline, there are 3 little “google”like boxes. In the ist box it writes ‘go elsewhere’. Scroll down til you find write to us and click on that. The page will appear with instructions for Letters to the editor. Just click on that!Voila!
January 23rd, 2007 at 4:53 pm
I agree with Susan. I had read a few of your articles bang-ing on some political issues which I found is a waste if it continue to hide in your little folder at Matters of Rakyat. Should do something about it. Let the mass have a chance to read your articles.
January 25th, 2007 at 3:02 pm
Hi George,
I have been quite busy lately as our first batch of students going to be here in 2 weeks time(5th Feb ).
Well, the matter of quality of medical students have been discussed many times. I have even written this in Berita article in MMA in 2004.
Again who cares?
Only now they realised that medic graduates are going down the drain. The 2 uni mentioned was IMU and Perak medical College if I am not mistaken.
Again if you notice what our minister said : We are sending them a warning and I hope they would comply ? So it means no action is going to be taken anyway !!!!
Your sis is right. WE have a beutiful country with 3rd class mentality politicians.
Read Malaysia kini, you will come across many interesting news.
Anyway, Monash University is different fm others as our quality control is not only by MMC but MOnash University Australia and Australian Medical Councill………………..
Our target is 25% international students!!!
Pagal
January 25th, 2007 at 4:24 pm
Hi Paga,
Nice to know you still visit. i think we should both write to the papers. Somehow I still cannot find the button my sis is talking about.
January 27th, 2007 at 5:41 am
To Mr Paga,
in your statement dated 25th Jan, you have said the 2 med colleges that were under scrutiny was IMU and Perak college of medicine. May I know where are your resources from, as far as I know even our Minister of Health, DR Chua declined to name the uni involved. Such statement may bring unnecessary distress to some of students from these uni. As a medical student in one of those uni you have mentioned, I am very much concerned about this matter too, but let’s not start pin pointing which uni is involved.
January 27th, 2007 at 2:34 pm
well med student,
he also mentioned that it involved 2 private universities that were set up 10 years ago and are taking about 300 students. Do the maths and don’t hide behind the blinds. Isn’t it obvious? Politicians always avoid saying things like this to avoid a political disfavour.
Dear med student, rather than being distressed about it accept it and improve the situation. And like I mentioned, it is not about pin pointing finger to any university but rather this goes to show that quality of education especially medical education is far from anybody’s interest! Why should a country as small as malaysia have so many medical institution? And now there are political influence in almost all of them!
You must agree that the clinical skills and knowledge of every passing batch is deteriorating and is far nothing compared to my senior batches. Why is this when health and medicine is the most valuable thing ever to any population? The senior batches were ready for the world the moment they graduated but the present batches are not. This I feel, is a western influence to monopolise the field of medicine so that the junior doctors unlike before are made to be incapable to handle many things. This is of course in general, there will always be the smart and intelligent ones that will pave their way no matter what!
Anyway, I have informed Dr Paga to give his comments. Thanks for visiting and commenting.
January 27th, 2007 at 3:34 pm
Dear Med Student,
As Mr.George has mentioned, from the way the minister announced, it is quite clear which uni he is referring to. Recently(around November 2006), there was a meeting held in MMC regarding the student -lecturer ratio. During the meeting, lecturer:student ratio of 1:6-8 was brought up by our DG. Only IMU was very unhappy of the ruling. You must also understand that part-time lecturers are not considered in the calculation of the ratio. Only full timers and fractional staffs are considered.
Again the unis that I mentioned about are the ones that people are talking about since the announcement. I am quite sure about one of it but not the other one.
As the minister said, if any action were to be taken against both the uni, the students would be taken care of.
Thanks for your comment.
January 27th, 2007 at 5:52 pm
Thanks Paga for the comment.
Paga is it all right if I use some of the points in your articles to be highlighted here as I feel that the topics of medical education and medical healthcare in Malaysia are not very well understood and many try to avoid it as though it is another sensitive issue.
If you have any articles that you would like to write and or highlight you could email me and I will publish it for you.
Thanks.
January 27th, 2007 at 5:57 pm
“You must also understand that part-time lecturers are not considered in the calculation of the ratio. Only full timers and fractional staffs are considered.”
If the above is true, then I must presume logically that many medical institutions are not upto that supposed ratio. UITM is also probably one of them, as of surgical department, but I havent got the source. Are SLAB scheme or acting lectures(those MOs taken as lecturers but undergoing speciality training) included?
January 31st, 2007 at 8:42 am
The statement about parttime lecturers are not included is true. Our director of curiculum who attended the meeting by MMC, chaired by DG told us about it. And that is why IMU was against it at that meeting.
But this ratio include all the full time lecturers in the university and does not go by the department.
So you may have only 1 surgeon but you may have 10 radiologist and still qualify.
I am not sure of the SLAB scheme.
George, you can go ahead and publish any of my articles that I have written. I don’t give a dam as I am not in government service anmore.
They are penalising MA’s for running GP clinics but our very own klinik kesihatans are run by MA………………….
What a double standard !!!!
January 31st, 2007 at 5:10 pm
As usual a very dumb way to make an assessment. Your example is a good one as it clearly shows the weakness of the system. Students doing surgery will learn less but as usual the ministry is only interested in numbers.
Well MA’s in GP and MA’s in KK are of the same standard but of differing functions. The MA’s in GP are more daring and perform many procedures and give all kind of advices - in short they mask themselves as doctors and patients do not know this and think that they are being treated by a doctor. An MA in KK does maybe the same but his status as an MA is known to the public and their work is limited by the medications made available and the instruments made available. This is not double standard. One is done out of greed and breech of ethics but the other is due to lack of staffing! For this my friend i disagree with you.
Thanks for letting me use the points in your article.
February 1st, 2007 at 2:02 pm
Well, I do agree with you in this but yet again, Ma’s in KK are doing some minor procedures and some of them do not introduce themselves as MAs. Many patients still think that they were seen by a doctor.
As I have written in my latest article on Malaysian health care system in Berita magazine, we only have 13 more years to achieve developed country status but our primary healthcare is still being run by MAs etc.
What I mean is that the MOH should concentrate on how to improve these rather than going after the private doctors etc etc.
Trust me, our primary health care is in a mess.
Chronic illness complications are booming and the hospitals are going to suffer soon.
Pandan hospital is hardly functioning as there is no man power. JB hospital is more crowded than before I left…….
February 3rd, 2007 at 8:37 pm
Oh no not only is the primary health care in a mess even the hospitals are in a mess too. Maybe it is just a way for the government to say” look things are getting bad so let us privatise these”
Well have you seen my latest article on Sinsehs
Wouldn’t it be an easier solution to all this — to give us our dues and increase our pay! One single answer to settle all issues! Could it be that easy. It seems so! Efflux of doctors, quality of care, better healthcare future — but they don’t see it - they can’t be that blind - they just want to have a reason to privatise!
Read also the Grandrounds - Health consumerism! and the comments!
February 4th, 2007 at 7:12 am
What sinseh article?