PETALING JAYA: The government has been urged to streamline promotion pathways for para-medical staff, the same way it has for around 125,000 low-grade civil servants in administrative jobs.
A former senator told FMT that most dental assistants, community nurses, and public health assistants are in the lowest U1 category of the health services scheme.
Dr RA Lingeshwaran said that although these three categories of healthcare staff entered the public service with Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) qualification, they must undergo special training for one to two and a half years to get a permanent post.
On the other hand, those entering the clerical service only need their SPM and do not need to go through training to get a permanent appointment, the former Sungai Bakap Hospital director said.
“While they (the para-medical staff) welcome the government’s plan for the clerical and administrative staff, they feel they should also have a time-based promotion scheme to move up to U5,” said Lingeshwaran, who met representatives of unions earlier this week.
The unions for dental assistants, community nurses and public health assistants handed over a memorandum, which the former senator said he would pass on to health minister Dzulkefly Ahmad.
Separately, Community Nurses Union president Nurul Janah Yusof said there are 17,000 community nurses in the service now, with at least 10,000 in the U1 grade despite having served for 10 to 15 years.
“The road for us to move to grade U5 is a long and tough one. We have to wait for a minimum of five years before we are eligible to apply for a special one-year course to be in the promotion list.
“Most have to wait for between five and 10 years to be picked for the course. Even after completing the course, the waiting period for appointment to grade U5 can take several years,” she said.
In some cases, community nurses remained in the U1 grade even after 20 years of service, Nurul added.
“We need a better and faster scheme to move up the ladder. It’s too tough and slow now.”
Currently, there are about 4,600 dental assistants and 4,200 public health assistants in the U1 grade.
Last week, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said the public services department was developing a clearer and more structured promotion pathway for Grade 1 civil servants, particularly administrative, clerical and finance assistants.
Anwar said the promotion pathways were being designed with reasonable requirements, including required service periods and specialised courses over several weeks aimed at enhancing skills.
