By Asia Samachar | Malaysia |
Sarawak medical practitioner Dr Kalwinder Singh Khaira is the new president of the Malaysian Medical Association (MMA), the largest doctors’ association in the country.
He will will succeed Dr Azizan Abdul for a one-year term.
Dr Kalwinder, 56, is currently a consultant physician and head of the department of medicine at the Sarawak General Hospital in Kuching.
He has also been serving as the elected member from Sarawak on the Malaysian Medical Council (MMC) since 2018. He is currently serving his third term from 2024 to 2027. MMC is a regulatory body set up under the Medical Act and chaired by Director-General of Health.
On the community front, Dr Kalwinder is also Gurdwara Sahib Kuching management committee president, a position he had held since 2012.
“This role comes with extra responsibilities…I feel it is with God’s blessings and the support of my wife and family, the medical fraternity and Sangat [congregation] that I can achieve and do what I do,” he told Asia Samachar.
Dr Kalwinder is also the fourth Sarawakian ever to become national president of MMA in its 65-years history and is the first national president from the Ministry of Health in 10 years.
“Being an insider, he has a good knowledge of internal networking. He has a very full agenda to get through for the 1 year with issues for doctors in private and working in public, the patients interests, the much needed health system reforms,” said Sarawak Deputy Premier and Minister for Public Health, Housing and Local Government in a social media update.
Dr Kalwinder was reported to have said he will work closely with the Health Ministry (MOH), other ministries and government departments in achieving this aim.
“My primary focus will be on doing everything possible to provide and lay the foundation for a better and more secure future for our doctors. This includes addressing job security, a healthy work environment, specialist training opportunities, work-life balance, recognition of their efforts in terms of salaries, on-call allowances, and their mental wellbeing,” he said at MMA’s annual banquet in Kuching on Sept 7.
“We hope for more meaningful engagement with the government on establishing a healthcare reform commission, as it will impact the long-term future of healthcare and healthcare workers in the country. With over 17,000 members, MMA is eager to provide its input,” he added.
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