DAP chairman backs parallel pathway program

DAP chairman Lim Guan Eng has thrown his support in favor of the parallel pathway program that has come under the spotlight recently.

He pointed out that the program should be maintained as it is.

“The Health Ministry’s famous surgeon and Malaysian Association for Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery (MATCVS) President Dr Basheer Ahamed Abdul Kareem is correct.

“The parallel pathway programme for medical specialists is widely recognised by top medical regulators from UK, Singapore and Hong Kong and the coordination of the exit exams by the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, whose pedigree is unquestioned.

“The parallel pathway programme was started as a joint venture by the father of cardiac surgery in Malaysia, Tan Sri Dr Yahya Awang, to open up opportunities to talented local doctors and mitigate the severe shortage of specialists in Malaysia to save Malaysian lives.

“Graduates of the parallel pathway programme are now serving in the best hospitals in the world but face the risk of being disqualified as not good enough to serve at our local hospitals.

“What will happen then to all the patients at government hospitals waiting life-saving surgery? Let us not sacrifice excellence and meritocracy for mindless bureaucracy, said Lim who is also Bagan MP and Air Puteh state assemblyman.

The program was thrust into the limelight after the Malaysian Medical Council stirred controversy when it refused to recognise specialists graduating under the parallel pathway programme.

Under the programme, doctors are trained in high-volume accredited health ministry facilities and hospitals under the guidance of royal colleges in the UK.

Senior doctors have claimed that MMC rejected the applications of some eight cardiothoracic surgeons and 100 family medicine specialists trained under the programme for listing on the National Specialist Register, despite repeated requests from the health ministry to do so.

Malay Consultation Council’s (MPM) education bureau chairman Ibrahim Abu Shah too joined the fray in the condemning the program.