730 contract pharmacists in limbo as contracts expire next year, says senator

Dr RA Lingeshwaran says the government did not absorb them into permanent service in October as previously promised.

The contracts of 730 pharmacists in the public health service will expire in April and July next year, according to the senator.

PETALING JAYA:

 A total of 730 government pharmacists have been left in limbo as promises to absorb them into permanent positions have yet to be fulfilled, says senator Dr RA Lingeshwaran.

Raising the matter in the Dewan Negara on Monday, he said they were among the 1,330 floating officers who were supposed to have been offered permanent posts in October, but only 600 were absorbed.

Lingeshwaran said these pharmacists had been told by the ministry that their applications had expired and that they were no longer on the waiting list.

“They will now have to wait for the announcement to submit fresh applications for permanent posts again.

“This means that they will be among the new applicants which will number several hundreds. This is not fair to them as they will be in the queue all over again,” he said.

Lingeshwaran, a former director of the Sungai Bakap Hospital in Penang, urged the health ministry to address this pressing issue as the contracts of these pharmacists will expire in April and July next year.

“This is their third contract which will be the last under ministry regulations. In view of this, there is an urgent need for a structured transition plan to ensure continuity of pharmaceutical services in government health institutions.

“Firstly, the health ministry must assure these pharmacists that their last applications are still valid and that they will be absorbed by the time their contracts expire,” he said.

He said it would be totally unfair for the ministry not to do so, as these pharmacists have been serving the nation for five years at hospitals and health clinics around the country, including in remote areas. - FMT