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MMA: Lack of interest in medicine cause of housemen's failure
Published:  Nov 9, 2015 4:55 PM
Updated: Nov 11, 2015 2:51 AM

The Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) has denied that language competency is the main cause behind the reported failure of some 1,000 medical graduates to become full-fledged doctors, despite having completed their two-year housemanship programme.

MMA president Dr Ashok Philip, who referred to claims made by MMA Malacca chapter president Prof Dr M Nachiappan, said the main reason was instead related to a lack of interest in medicine as well as stress.

“The statement to The Star newspaper was made in his (Nachiappan)’s personal capacity and does not reflect the official position of the MMA.

“Many of the housemen studied in countries where the main language is not English, so I believe they are quite able to handle minor problems with English,” Philip said in a statement.

While noting that inability to cope with stress was a contributing factor, Nachiappan had reportedly attributed the main cause of the problem to the students’ poor command of English.

He said without proficiency in English, medical students would find it difficult to keep pace with their peers from other nations.

“There must be an urgency to improve the grasp of the language at the primary level. Otherwise, the quality of doctors will go downhill,” he reportedly said.

Nachiappan, who is also the deputy dean of Malacca Manipal Medical College, added that medical schools were also facing difficulties in churning quality medical graduates due to lack of exposure in English.

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