"All the best to him," said a contract doctor, who only wants to be called Dr Amir, who recently rejected a permanent posting in Sabah as he only had 48 hours to make the potentially life-changing decision.
"I hope he can solve this mess," Amir, 29, told Malaysiakini, in reference to newly appointed Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin.
He expects Khairy to resolve the ongoing issues impacting contract doctors.
After serving four years as a contract medical officer at a government health clinic, Amir said he finally received an email from the Health Ministry last month with an offer for a permanent position.
He is one of 85 contract doctors who reportedly rejected the Health Ministry's offer for them to be absorbed into the civil service, while 200 others - all from the peninsula - had accepted the offer to fill vacancies in East Malaysia.
Another 15 contract doctors initially accepted the offer but resigned after accepting employment elsewhere, Health Ministry secretary-general Mohd Shafiq Abdullah had said.
When contacted, Amir said with his daily duties at the clinic, he had no time to plan the offer to move from Negeri Sembilan to Sabah, leaving behind his wife who is pregnant in her third trimester.
Given the time constraint, Amir said he chose to stay and serve the remainder of his extended six-year contract until it expired in May next year.
"How can I make the most crucial decision in my life in just 48 hours?
"I needed more time to discuss and convince my wife. She is also a government servant and so could not follow me to Sabah," said Amir.
"I'm already in a long-distance relationship with my wife who lives alone in the east coast where she works.
"But at least I can still see her if there is any emergencies. It wouldn't be possible if I stayed in Sabah," he said, admitting that he has now lost the only opportunity for permanent placement.
Hartal Doktor Kontrak - the movement of contract doctors behind last month's nationwide strike - yesterday disputed the Health Ministry's offer to 300 contract doctors, from over 23,000 currently serving at government facilities nationwide.
The Malaysian Medical Association (MMA), however, said the doctors should have accepted the offers of permanent positions but be allowed to apply for placement elsewhere later.
As a house officer, Amir said he previously served in Sarawak before returning to the peninsula where he is now married and made plans to settle down.
Echoing questions raised over the Health Ministry's sincerity in offering the permanent positions, Amir said there were already contract medical officers in Sabah and Sarawak who could be absorbed into the system.
"I understand that East Malaysia needs more healthcare workers as I used to work there.
"But why don't they (Health Ministry) offer the permanent posts to contract medical officers who are currently serving in East Malaysia as a token for them to stay there?" he said.
"Even in the Klang Valley, they are still short of healthcare workers; why not send doctors there?" he added.
In terms of career development, Amir said he is currently enrolled in a parallel pathway programme towards becoming a family medicine specialist, requiring him to be posted at a health clinic.
As the permanent positions are offered to fill vacancies, he questioned whether a contract doctor who accepted the offer could have an option to continue pursuing their specialist fields.
Further, Amir noted the offer was tied to strict conditions, including he could not pass on the opportunity to another friend who was keen to accept it.
"I would gladly offer my permanent post to my contract doctor friend to go there, but I can't do that.
"Perhaps those who rejected the offers can nominate a friend who wants it, for the ministry to screen," he said.
Amir also said the ministry should consider extending the current two-day window for contract doctors to accept or reject an offer, as well as providing assurance they would be allowed to choose their respective departments based on individual interest.
Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob today announced that Khairy, previously the science, technology and innovations minister, will be switching portfolios with Dr Adham Baba.
In the last Dewan Rakyat sitting, Adham said the previous Perikatan Nasional government would bring the contract doctors issue to Parliament to discuss long-term solutions including several legal amendments. - Mkini
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