The issue surrounding the cardiothoracic surgery postgraduate programme in Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) will be discussed during the weekly cabinet meeting, said Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
“We will discuss the matter this Wednesday during the cabinet meeting,” Anwar said briefly during a press conference after attending the Postnormal Times Madani Exhibition at Berjaya Times Square, Kuala Lumpur today.
He said this when asked if the cabinet has decided how to resolve this matter.
Malaysia is facing a shortage of medical specialists including cardiothoracic surgeons.
Three Health Ministry centres in Kota Bharu, Kuantan, and Kota Kinabalu have only one cardiothoracic surgeon each.
UiTM is the only university that offers a parallel pathway programme in collaboration with IJN in the cardiothoracic field, which comprises surgery and care for heart and lung diseases.
On April 25, health website Codeblue reported Raja Amin Raja Mokhtar, board member of the UiTM-IJN (National Heart Institute) cardiothoracic surgery postgraduate programme, as saying the varsity is agreeable to opening the course to non-bumiputera.
The Malaysian Medical Association previously said UiTM should allow the entry of non-bumiputera Malaysians seeking specialised training in the cardiothoracic field, given that international students can enrol in the university.
Despite this, Higher Education Minister Zambry Abdul Kadir said there had been no discussions on allowing the entry of non-bumiputera and that the issue had been turned into a point of contention.
UiTM students later protested against the inclusion of non-bumiputera students, with Umno Youth chief Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh also voicing out against the proposal.
UiTM to ‘accept govt’s decision’
UiTM vice-chancellor Shahrin Sahib said the varsity is committed to upholding the UiTM Act 1976 (Act 173) and Article 153 of the Federal Constitution, which only allows the enrolment of bumiputera students.
However, UiTM will accept whatever the government decides with the blessing of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong if the matter arises due to national need, he added.
Meanwhile, prior to the UiTM brouhaha, there was a separate issue regarding specialists who graduated from parallel pathway programmes not being able to register for practice.
Four graduates who earned a Fellowship of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons Edinburgh (FRSC Ed) qualification for cardiothoracic surgery were told they could not register as specialists and practise the speciality in the country.
This was because the Malaysian Medical Council does not recognise the FRCS Ed qualification.
The Health Ministry had said it was looking into amending the Medical Act among other solutions to resolve the matter. - Mkini
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