With reference to news reports from the president of the Malaysian Medical Council (MMC) that four doctors were recently reprimanded for hiring unregistered doctors in their clinics, the Medical Practitioners Coalition Associations Malaysia (MPCAM ), an association consisting mainly of general practitioners, views the matter highlighted by the Malaysian Medical Council president seriously though the numbers highlighted by the council is less than 0.1 percent of the total registered clinics.

To curb this practise where non-doctors steal the identity of doctors and apply for locums, the MPCAM would like to suggest the following for immediate consideration by the Malaysian Medical Council president, Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.

1. The inclusion of the photographs of the registered medical practitioners in the online version of the Annual Practicing Certificate in the website of the Malaysian Medical Council.

Our members have bought to our attention that many unregistered ‘doctors’ have been stealing the identity of registered doctors from the Malaysia Medical Council and printing their own Annual Practising Certificates and producing these false documents to doctors looking for locums. There is no way the doctor can ascertain if the documents are false or genuine when comparing the details with the MMC website.

2. To include more details and security measures on the MMC website, so as to assist doctors to make a decision if a person is a genuine registered medical practitioner.

A doctor cannot be held responsible if the information given by the medical council is inadequate as it is really difficult to ascertain this with the establishment of medical colleges and production of doctors in the thousands in recent years.

The Malaysian Medical Council can be held equally responsible if they do not assist its members and the public to determine who is a registered doctor and who not.

DR RAJ KUMAR MAHARAJAH is a member of the central committee of the Medical Practitioners Coalition Association of Malaysia (MPCAM).