Malaysia - In agreement on medical scholarship

KUALA LUMPUR - The government will issue a statement on scholarship offers for this year soon, director-general of the Public Service Department Tan Sri Abu Bakar Abdullah said yesterday.

"We have received the Health Ministry's recommendations."

Abu Bakar was commenting on Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai's statement on Friday where the Health Ministry had suggested that the PSD stop providing medical scholarships to non-Ivy League universities overseas.

Liow had said many medical universities in Malaysia were well equipped and could cater to Malaysians seeking careers in the medical field.

Malaysian Medical Association president Dr Mary Cardosa said it was a good idea to restrict the number of scholarships abroad.

"For example, those accepted into good medical schools at Oxford University, Cambridge University, University of Edinburgh and Sydney University should be given scholarships on the provision that they return to Malaysia to serve."

She said that the government should not send students to lesser known medical schools, such as to some places in south Asia and another nearby country.

Selangor Health director Dr Azman Abu Bakar agreed with Liow's suggestion and said giving scholarships to students to study in top universities abroad would ensure a good cross fertilisation of doctors when these doctors return to serve the country and interact with locally trained doctors.

"These students will get to study alongside the cream of the crop worldwide and be taught by the best teachers in these established schools."

Besides this, Azman also believed that limiting the number of scholarships to only Ivy League colleges would ensure the government's money was well utilised.

"The amount needed to send one student overseas can fund three students locally.

"Funding should only be given to those at Ivy League universities where our students will obtain exceptional qualifications."

Federation of Reproductive Health chairman associate professor Dr Mary Huang Soo Lee said the taxpayer's money should not be used to send Malaysians to mediocre medical universities abroad.

"We have good local universities and yet we send our students to universities that are not as good as our own."

She said scholarships should not only be extended to students accepted into Ivy League universities but also to those on a par with them.

Eunice Au | The Star/Asia News Network

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