Government Fights for Professional Freedom and Legal Certainty for Doctors

Coordinating Deputy Minister for Law, Human Rights, Immigration, and Corrections, Otto Hasibuan, asserted that the medical profession currently urgently requires two crucial things amidst increasingly complex medical challenges: professional freedom and legal certainty. According to Otto, these challenges range from the unequal distribution of medical personnel, increasing demand for healthcare services, the development of health technology and artificial intelligence, to the rising complexity of medical cases. “Firstly, the medical profession requires professional freedom to practise based on scientific knowledge and professional ethics. Secondly, legal certainty that provides protection in carrying out duties according to professional standards and service standards,” Otto said in Jakarta, Saturday (27/6). Looking ahead, several strategic agendas will be of common concern, including the need for the dissemination of derivative recommendations, the need to establish independence, strengthening the council as an independent body, strengthening the education system and professional discipline, improving the quality of education and doctor competency, as well as strengthening legal protection for medical personnel and healthcare workers, including doctors. Otto also placed great hope in the Indonesian Doctors Association and the Indonesian Doctors’ College to continue moving forward as credible organisations. “I hope you can continue to be guardians of independent and credible professional competency, become strategic partners of the government in national health development, and continue to develop medical science that is adaptive to the times,” he concluded.