KUALA LUMPUR: Only 22 medical officers have chosen placements in Sabah and Sarawak despite there being over 1,000 vacancies in the East Malaysian states, says Deputy Health Minister Datuk Lukanisman Awang Sauni.
In June, the Health Ministry mandated that contract medical officers moving to permanent roles must select at least one placement option in Sabah or Sarawak via e-Placement 2.0.
They are required to choose three options, and one must be in Sabah or Sarawak, to help address the manpower shortage in these two states.
“Only seven medical officers have chosen Sarawak for a permanent placement and 15 in Sabah, even though Sarawak has 1,000 vacancies,” Lukanisman told the Dewan Rakyat.
“We want to make sure these vacancies are filled, even if not to the maximum. Please come and report for duty, and they can appeal later to return to their preferred placement,” he said.
He was responding to a supplementary question from Salamiah Mohd Nor (PN–Temerloh) about government policies to curb the migration of doctors and nurses.
Lukanisman also noted that the ministry may not be able to accommodate all officers’ preferences for their placement of choice.
According to Health Ministry data from April 2025, Sabah has only 4,708 doctors but requires 9,356.
In Sarawak, Deputy Premier Datuk Dr Sim Kui Hian reported there are just 4,000 doctors, half of whom are from Peninsular Malaysia, against a needed 6,000 by 2025.
