State minister for Health, Dr. Muhammad Habeeb have said that the government believes that health services can be best delivered by Maldivian doctors, nurses and technicians. He made this statement while speaking at a ceremony held at Faculty of Health Sciences to celebrate the achievement of the health sector during the last three years.
Dr. Habeeb said that with this government’s health policy, by 2020, there will be Maldivian specialists working in all regional hospitals of Maldives. He said that in 2015 and 2016 the government has funded the studied of 37 specialist doctors.
Dr. Habeeb said that around 20,000 dollars is being spent on each of these specialist doctors annually. He said that this figure is double the number of doctors sent to train between 2004 and 2014. He further said that before the end of this year doctors will be sent to train from the fields of cardiology, plastic surgery, and cryosurgery. He said that in 2017 and 2018 Maldivian specialist doctors will be working in the atolls.
Dr. Habeeb also talked about the challenges faced by the Maldivian health industry. He said that the lack of legislations related to the health sector was a huge challenge. He said that however, with the introduction of various legislations related to the health sector, they have could solve various problems that the health sector faced before. He said that the laws will protect the rights of medical practitioners and patients alike.