JAKARTA, Sept 18 — Indonesia is currently short of 120,000 general practitioners, according to its Deputy Health Minister Dante Saksono Harbuwono.
This gap is measured against the ideal doctor-to-population ratio recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO), highlighting the ongoing challenge in the country’s healthcare system, reported ANTARA News Agency.
"Our general practitioners are around 150,000. We are still lacking another 120,000 doctors based on the ratio by WHO stating that one doctor should cover one thousand residents," he remarked in an online discussion yesterday.
Currently, on average, medical faculties in Indonesia only produce 12,000 general practitioners per year.
Harbuwono added that in the absence of intervention from political policies or government programmes, the need for 120,000 new doctors can only be achieved in the next decade.
"Therefore, we are opening the largest possible quota for general practitioner education. Second, opening a new medical faculty with an academic health survey system," he said.
This is followed by the provision of medical education scholarships to the best talents in the region, with the obligation to return to serve in their region on completion of their education.
Speaking in connection with the need for specialist doctors, Harbuwono then outlined data from the National Development Planning Agency, stating that the ratio of specialist doctors to the population of around 0.30 per 1,000 residents is still not ideal as compared to the total number of Indonesians and needs to be improved.
"We are also still facing uneven distribution of specialists throughout Indonesia. Around 59 per cent of specialists are in Java Island," he said.
Hence, the government provides scholarships with an affirmative system to the best doctors in the region with the Endowment Fund for Education (LPDP) scheme and scholarship assistance from the Ministry of Health.
In one year, they granted three thousand scholarships through LPDP to provide living expenses and education for general practitioners to pursue specialist education under the special condition of returning to their origin region and serving as specialists once they complete their education.
Harbuwono affirmed that to achieve the Golden Indonesia 2045 vision, the need for doctors must be met immediately to improve the health of the Indonesian people.
— Bernama
