More Doctors to Become Public Servants: PM

Prime Minister Hun Sen attended the closing of the annual meeting at the Health Ministry in Phnom Penh yesterday. KT/ Vireak Mai

More Doctors to Become Public Servants: PM

Khmer Times / Ven Rathavong Thursday, 10 March 2016 

Prime Minister Hun Sen wants more specialized doctors to work for the government in public medical facilities and become public servants, according to a speech given by the premier to close yesterday’s annual conference held by the Ministry of Health. 

Mr. Hun Sen ordered the Health and Civil Service Ministers to work on recruiting the new medical professionals, which he called vital to raising the quality of care of the Kingdom’s public health institutions.

Mr. Hun Sen also took a moment during the speech to call for Cambodian doctors to reform their behavior in order to better serve patients. 

“We really need the specialized doctors. Because we are leaking those doctors. It is why we always have to send patients abroad for medical treatment,” he said. “We have specialists to care for patients, but they cannot work for the public healthcare sector.” 

The prime minister was referring to a current provision that prevents doctors who are over 35 years old from becoming public servants. 

“Normally, the specialist doctors learn more than normal doctors. When they graduate, their age is over 30 and so they cannot work [as civil servants in the healthcare sector],” he said. This, he said, has driven doctors to the private sector. 

Mr. Hun Sen ordered both ministers to “work on this”, and told them to begin paying the newly-hired specialists their salaries at the start of April, the same time all public officials throughout the country are paid. The specialist will not have to take any sort of exams in order to be matriculated into the civil servant cadre, he added. 

 The premier also made a point of addressing retired medical specialists, whom he said should be considered for public office and positions in public hospitals. 

Health Ministry spokesman Ly Sovan told Khmer Times that he and other ministry leaders are happy about prime minister’s decision. 

“The specialists, who might have become civil servants if they were younger, work for NGOs and in the private healthcare sector,” Mr. Sovan said. “We regret this, because they have to spend almost half of their lives to become specialists.” 

He added his ministry will organize a procedure to make changes and then announce it at the ministry. 

Civil Service Ministry spokesman Yuk Bunna said there are nearly 20,000 doctors across the Kingdom who are civil servants. 

“This year, the Health Ministry will recruit 775 doctors,” he said, adding that there are an additional 3,000 healthcare professionals working in the public sector as contracted officials. 

“We will discuss and check with the Health Ministry about the number of specialists who are graduating, and how many doctors are getting special training.”