KUALA LUMPUR: The Health Ministry is considering the recruitment of nurses from abroad to help the private sector overcome the shortage.
Its minister, Dr Zaliha Mustafa, said she was scrutinising the issue raised by the Association of Private Hospitals Malaysia (APHM) and embarking on engagements with the private sector.
"The matter is being looked into by the ministry. We are looking at how best we can help the private sector meet its needs.
"We have to engage with the private sector several more times and look at issues involving intakes and the need to bring in nurses to help improve the service," she said after officiating at the 29th APHM International Healthcare Conference and Exhibition here today.
Present was APHM president Datuk Dr Kuljit Singh.
Dr Kuljit said private hospitals had been experiencing a serious nurse shortage, and hiring nurses from abroad would help them attend to more patients and, hence, assist the government.
"From our survey in November last year, the feedback we obtained from 103 hospitals showed that we would need an additional 9,224 nurses this year right up to 2025.
"The private hospitals are keen to hire nurses trained abroad, and we have discussed this matter with the ministry's Nursing Division and asked for an exception to Clause 5 of its guidelines on hiring foreign nurses.
"We are only asking for two to three years to fill the gap before the nursing schools can meet the demand."
