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Although the Government promises that she would not shirk the duty of
providing better

service, some patients face difficulty. The poor need welfare care.

The Government allocates about RM 2.6 billion a year for medical treatment, providing service for about five million new outpatients and about one million inpatients. Other patients see private doctors.

People require affordable health care. There are private health care
insurance. However, we are still waiting for the Government to work out a workable national health insurance. But, we must learn from other countries such as United Kingdom so as to prevent mistakes.

Meanwhile, some patients have a tough time. The shortage of doctors makes matters worse. There are long waiting lists for operations and other types of procedure. For example, a patient attends a government clinic. He or she waits, sometimes for hours. A doctor examines and does tests. One or two weeks later, he or she sees another doctor who admits the patient a few days for further tests. He or she is then referred to another clinic. After perhaps four to six months, he or she may still be in the dark about diagnosis and treatment. The corporatized or privatized university hospital may charge as much as other private hospitals unless the patients receive welfare care.

Dr Tan Seng Giaw