SIBU: Deputy Minister for Education, Innovation and Talent Development Datuk Dr Annuar Rapaee is open to the idea of temporarily opening Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) to non-Bumiputera students for training cardiothoracic surgeons.
However, he said the public needs to understand UiTM’s objectives and its ‘Bumiputera-only’ admission policy.
“It is not permanent and only open up UiTM for other courses for the needs (due to the shortage of cardiothoracic surgeons). I was told that Universiti Malaya (UM) will also have similar courses in the future.
“So, if there is some form of agreement that is meant only for this time (temporary) and later on, once UM is developed so the rest can go to UM, why not? It is the needs of the country and the nation,” he told reporters at the Jom Masuk U Zon Sarawak II programme organised by UiTM Mukah at Tun Abdul Taib Mahmud Chancellor’s Hall, University of Technology Sarawak (UTS) on Saturday.
The Nangka assemblyman also stressed the need to consider the number of students willing to train as cardiothoracic surgeons.
“I do not think many doctors want to become cardiothoracic surgeons at the moment. In view of the market, fewer are choosing to perform bypass surgery, and more are becoming cardiologists rather than cardiothoracic surgeons.
“So, this is something we need to look into. If the statistics show that there are many who want to become cardiothoracic surgeons, it’ll take about four or five years to be trained as a cardiothoracic surgeon after general surgery. So, it’s a long way to go,” he added.
Therefore, Dr Annuar said that it all depends on the country’s needs and the number of students willing to take the course.
“So the question now is, if we open up UiTM for non-Bumiputera, first of all, we must know how many will apply to join? If there’s a significant number and the country is in need, why not? It is only temporary,” he said.
Previously, the Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir, confirmed that there have been no discussions about admitting non-Bumiputera students to Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM).
This statement follows a report suggesting that UiTM might open its cardiothoracic surgery postgraduate training programme to non-Bumiputera trainees.
UiTM Medical Faculty Professor Dr Raja Amin Raja Mokhtar had proposed this to address the lack of recognised parallel training pathways in cardiothoracic surgery.
Meanwhile, the Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) president Dr Azizan Abdul Aziz said that such a move would be in the best interest of public health and address acute shortages in specialists.
