KUALA LUMPUR: A total of 1,347 Ministry of Health (MOH) permanent medical and dental officers have been offered specialist study programmes for the 2022/2023 academic session.

Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said this covers 1,232 officers who were offered the medical master's specialist study programme, 54 officers the dental master's study programme and 61 other officers the Parallel Pathway Programme.

Apart from that, he said 216 contract officers were also offered specialist study programmes through the Specialist Training Programme (PLK) on MOH scholarships, which are being offered for the first time to contract officers since the contract scheme was introduced in 2016.

"This offer for the specialist study programme, with sponsorship through PLK, is also in line with the decision by the Cabinet to create an equal career pathway between permanent and contract officers," he said in a statement today.

Khairy said the officers can check the eHLP website at http://ehlp.moh.gov.my on the status of their application for the offer of full-pay study leave (CBBP) with the Hadiah Latihan Persekutuan (HLP) and PLK with MOH scholarship for successful officers to follow the programmes.

Advertisements for the study applications came out on Jan 28 and the candidate selection process began after the closing date on March 10.

For the 2023/2024 academic session, applications for CBBP with the HLP and PLK with the MOH scholarship for the medical master's specialist study programme, dental master's study programme and Parallel Pathway programme will open in October.

-- BERNAMA