Dr Piprim Reveals Dismissal by Health Minister: 'I Hope I Can Continue the Fight Elsewhere'
Senior paediatric cardiac consultant and Chairman of the Indonesian Paediatric Association (IDAI), Piprim Basarah Yanuarso, has revealed that he was dismissed by Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin.
Dr Piprim made the announcement on his personal Instagram account on Sunday evening, 15 February 2026. In his post, he wrote: “To all my patients, particularly at RSCM, my students, my residents training to become paediatricians, and my fellows training to become paediatric cardiologists, I sincerely apologise because I am no longer able to accompany you in pursuing your education.”
The chronology of events leading to his dismissal began approximately two months before his transfer, when Dr Piprim was summoned by a senior figure, Professor Rinawati Rosiswanto, who warned him that if he refused to cooperate with the collegium established by the Health Minister, he would be transferred. However, Dr Piprim maintained that he was merely carrying out the mandate of the Paediatric Health Sciences congress in Semarang, which held that the Indonesian Paediatric Health Sciences collegium should remain independent.
Around April 2025, Dr Piprim was transferred from Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital (RSCM) to Fatmawati National Hospital. He regarded the transfer as sudden and lacking transparency, and chose not to immediately commence practice at his new hospital.
Fatmawati National Hospital recorded that Dr Piprim failed to report for work continuously following the transfer. On 25 August 2025, the hospital management issued first and second summons letters requesting Dr Piprim to attend for clarification, but both were ignored. On 15 September 2025, the Director of Fatmawati National Hospital imposed a disciplinary sanction in the form of a written reprimand, as Dr Piprim was deemed to have violated Government Regulation Number 94 of 2021 on Civil Service Discipline.
The matter reached its conclusion on 2 February 2026, when a decision for “honourable discharge not at own request” was issued, signed by Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin. The document cited serious disciplinary violations, namely absence from work without valid reason for an extended period.
Fatmawati National Hospital confirmed that the dismissal was purely due to Dr Piprim’s absence for 28 consecutive days. The hospital’s Director, Wahyu Widodo, stated that Dr Piprim had been aware of the risk of losing his civil service status since he failed to respond to the hospital’s summons.
Beyond the transfer issue, Dr Piprim also referenced a Constitutional Court ruling that affirmed medical collegia must be independent in nature. He argued that IDAI’s fight for collegium independence was already in line with the constitution.
However, his efforts alongside IDAI colleagues and professors who sought to maintain collegium independence ultimately resulted in a forced transfer, and because he refused a transfer he deemed inconsistent with the principle of meritocracy, he was ultimately dismissed by the Health Minister.
Dr Piprim expressed hope that he could continue his fight elsewhere, saying: “I hope I can still fight in another place.”
The case has attracted widespread attention in Indonesia’s healthcare sector and sparked debate over the independence of specialist medical collegia and civil service transfer policies within the Ministry of Health.