In the next three years, Singapore is planning to hire 180 doctors from India. A tender scheduled to close on October 10 states that they will hire 60 medical officers yearly from 2022 to 2024. There is a possibility of an extension to 2025.
Singapore has been recruiting doctors from other countries in order to meet their heavy workload and to supplement their healthcare capacity needs, said MOH Holdings MOHH, a company of Singapore's public healthcare institutions.
The company said it was hiring doctors from Australia and Britain. The applicants have to be graduates from the medical schools listed in the Medical Registration Act.
These doctors from other countries will be granted conditional registration for clinical practice under strict supervision. Locals who graduate from medical schools recognised by the Singapore Medical Council are given priority, according to the company.
This development has not gone well with many netizens. Many questioned the decision to import doctors, while others raised concerns about fake certification. Some people asked why SIngapore would not increase the intake of students in its medical schools.
The medical fraternity questioned the move. According to a recent post on social media, Associate Professor Jeremy Lim of Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health said that the rich world hires 700 junior doctors every year, 90 per cent of which are Singapore residents who have been trained in its medical schools or graduated from recognised overseas medical schools.
From 2012 to 2019, medical schools in Singapore have increased their combined intake by 45 per cent from 350 to 510.