AMS hails Health Minister’s address on Specialist shortage

Colombo, August 12 (Daily Mirror) - The Association of Medical Specialists (AMS) has commended Health Minister’s recent parliamentary address highlighting the critical shortage of medical specialists in Sri Lanka, calling it an accurate and timely assessment of a growing crisis.

The Minister outlined key factors driving the exodus of specialists, including inadequate transport, challenging working and living conditions in rural hospitals, and other professional hurdles. 

He stressed the urgent need to retain these highly trained professionals to safeguard the quality of the nation’s healthcare system.

In a statement issued yesterday, the AMS praised the Minister’s “insightful and candid” speech for raising public and parliamentary awareness of the issue. However, the association urged the government to follow words with action, beginning with addressing salary and allowance disparities between medical specialists and parallel-grade state officers.

The AMS called for immediate implementation of appropriate allowances to reflect the unique demands of the profession, such as constant availability, frequent disturbance, irregular travel to hospitals at unsociable hours, heavy extra-duty work, administrative tasks, teaching, training, research, and continuous professional development.

“Compensating specialists fairly will help retain talent and directly improve the quality of public health services, benefiting all citizens,” the AMS said.

Meanwhile, sources revealed that among Sri Lanka’s 70 medical specialties, there is an acute shortage of neurosurgeons, oncosurgeons, thoracic surgeons, plastic surgeons, and pediatric surgeons. Of the 310 medical officers eligible to be board-certified specialists in 2024, only 185 appeared on the annual list, indicating a significant shortfall in the pipeline.